Former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev was baptized as a Christian, albeit into a heretical offshot of Orthodoxy where milk is used instead of wine for the divine liturgy. They are mockingly called “The Milk Dunkers”. However, in practice, Gorbachev was both an athiest and a communist, facts we should not be too quick to forget.
This weekend he reaffirmed his athiesm after news agencies inaccurately interpreted his visit to the tomb of St. Francis of Assisi in Italy as a witness of Christian, and even Catholic faith.
The initial story broke on March 19. He stated:
It was through St. Francis that I arrived at the Church, so it was important that I came to visit his tomb.
Reporters noted that he seemed to pray at the grotto for at least 30 minutes.
He corrected and clarified later:
Over the last few days some media have been disseminating fantasies – I can’t use any other word – about my secret Catholicism, citing my visit to the Sacro Convento friary, where the remains of St. Francis of Assisi lie. To sum up and avoid any misunderstandings, let me say that I have been and remain an atheist.
The late President Ronald Reagan thought that Gorbachev was a closet believer. He had a close friendship with Pope John Paul II and gave the former pontiff much credit for the positive changes and freedom that came to Eastern Europe. There were rumors that President Gorbachev had confessed his Christian faith to the Pope but had insisted that it must be kept secret for political reasons. Given recent events in Russia, maybe he feels there is some need to continue the secrecy? Or, he may simply be as he says, a non-believer who has left us many ambiguous signs and words… despite the new clarification?
