A jolly chitchat in the Apostolic Palace…
PHOTOS: ‘Bishop’ Athanasius Schneider in Audience with ‘Pope’ Francis
(image ©Vatican Media)
The daily news bulletin put out by the Holy See Press Office on Monday, Jan. 20, 2025, included a rather unexpected item: ‘Pope’ Francis (Jorge Bergoglio) had received in audience that morning the Most Rev. Athanasius Schneider, O.R.C., auxiliary bishop of the diocese of Maria Santissima in Astana, Kazakhstan.
This was a surprise insofar as Schneider has for years been one of Bergoglio’s most vocal critics.
Not much is known about the meeting. There has been no comment from the Vatican, but of course there are photographs (above and further down below, and a few more here), and there are a few words from Bishop Schneider himself to the National Catholic Register:
… READ MOREBishop Athanasius Schneider said Pope Francis “showed great cordiality” toward him during a private audience on Monday and that they “spoke about some important themes on the life of the Church.”
