POPE FRANCIS, a source told Express, was unlike his “never popular” predecessor Pope Benedict as the debate over who should lead the Vatican began.

Francis, the Vatican’s leader, lashed out at Russia and the heinousness of the war in Ukraine on Saturday as he attended an Easter Mass event. While the 85-year-old did not lead the event, which was also attended by Ivan Fedorov, the mayor of Melitopol, a city in southern Ukraine that is now occupied by Russia’s troops, he expressed his views on the ongoing crisis. Francis was replaced as the service’s principal celebrant by Giovanni Battista Re, an Italian cardinal.

However, Francis recognized the “darkness of war, of cruelty” during the mission.

He said: “All of us pray for you and with you. We pray because there is so much suffering. We can only give you our company, our prayers, and say to you ‘courage, we accompany you.”

He concluded by declaring in Ukrainian, “Christ is risen.”

Francis is well-known for his composure under duress and has been lauded for his own ability to calm storms, most notably during the coronavirus outbreak.

One constant source of contention has been within his own church, with others claiming he was not the natural heir to the leader he succeeded, Pope Benedict.

Since Benedict’s unusual retirement in 2013, which he said was due to his declining health, divisions have developed within the church.

Since then, Francis has pursued a more liberal agenda, which represents a significant departure from Benedict’s own traditionalist attitude.

Some even maintain recognition of Benedict as pontiff, believing he was coerced into retiring by other high Vatican officials.

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