Tag: Christianity

The world needs people to build alliances that are not against others, but are in favor of everyone, Pope Francis told faith leaders at the U.N. Climate Change Conference being held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

“It is important that religions, without falling into the trap of syncretism, set a good example by working together: not for their own interests or those of one party, but for the interests of our world. Among these, the most important nowadays are peace and the climate,” he said in a video message.

“As religious representatives, let us set an example to show that change is possible and bear witness to respectful and sustainable lifestyles,” he said, speaking in Spanish at the Vatican.

The pope’s message was broadcast Dec. 3 during the inauguration of the first Faith Pavilion at a U.N. climate conference. The pope was to have been present at the COP28 conference Dec. 1-3, but canceled his trip Nov. 28 due to severe bronchitis.

“I offer you cordial greetings, and I am very sorry that I cannot be with you,” he said in the video message.

He thanked the organizers for establishing a religious pavilion as part of a COP “because this testifies to the willingness to work together.”

“At the present time the world needs alliances that are not against someone, but in favor of everyone,” he said.

“With a loud voice, let us implore leaders of nations that our common home be preserved,” he said. “Let us safeguard creation and protect our common home; let us live in peace and promote peace!”

The pope also had a longer speech prepared for the inauguration and that was read in Dubai by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state and president of the Vatican’s delegation at the climate conference.

The pope wrote in his talk, “the problem of climate change is also a religious problem: its roots lie in the creature’s presumption of self-sufficiency.”

“That insatiable desire for power wells up whenever we consider ourselves lords of the world, whenever we live as though God did not exist and, as a result, end up prey to passing things,” he wrote.

“Instead of mastering technology, we let technology master us,” the pope wrote. “We become mere commodities, desensitized, incapable of sorrow and compassion, self-absorbed and, turning our backs on morality and prudence, we destroy the very sources of life.”

Religions are “voices of conscience for humanity,” he wrote, and remind people that “we are finite creatures” with a need for the infinite and the duty to care for creation.

“We need, urgently, to act for the sake of the environment. It is not enough merely to increase spending: we need to change our way of life and thus educate everyone to sober and fraternal lifestyles,” he wrote.

“A world poor in contemplation will be a world polluted in soul, a world that will continue to discard people and produce waste,” he wrote. “A world that lacks prayer will speak many words but, bereft of compassion and tears, will only live off a materialism made of money and weapons.”

Peace and the stewardship of creation are interdependent, the pope wrote, and “peacekeeping is also a task for the religions.”

“May our actions not contradict the words we speak; may we not merely speak about peace but take a stand against those who claim to be believers yet fuel hatred and do not oppose violence,” he added.

The Faith Pavilion was hosted by the Muslim Council of Elders in collaboration with the COP28 presidency, the U.N. Environment Program and more than 50 faith organizations. It was hosting events that bring together representatives from religions, civil society, Indigenous peoples, scientists, young people and political leaders.

The inauguration event Dec. 3 opened with a video message from Egyptian Sheikh Ahmad el-Tayeb, grand imam of Al-Azhar, who greeted Pope Francis and wished him “a speedy and thorough recovery, health and well-being.”

Both Pope Francis and Sheikh el-Tayeb were shown on video signing the Interfaith Statement on Climate Change for COP28 that had been drafted and signed by more than two dozen other religious representatives at a global faith leaders’ summit in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Nov. 6-7.

The statement called for “inclusive dialogue, during and beyond COPs, with faith leaders, vulnerable groups, youth, women’s organizations and the scientific community to forge alliances that strengthen sustainable development,” and it “demands transformative action to keep 1.5 degrees Celsius within reach and serve affected and vulnerable communities.”

Despite his being in Rome, the pope said was closely following the work being done at the COP28 in Dubai.

After praying the Angelus from the Vatican Dec. 3, the pope reiterated his appeal “for a response to climate change with concrete political changes” and asked leaders to leave behind “particularism and nationalism, mindsets of the past, and embrace a common vision, all making every effort now, without delay, for a necessary global conversion.”

From his @Pontifiex accounts, the pope was tweeting daily calls for real progress to be made at COP28.

“Time is short. Now more than ever, the future of us all depends on the present that we now choose,” his Dec. 2 tweet said.

Gesonso, Kisii, Kenya, December 5, 2023

Photo: exarchate-africa.ru     

Another mass Baptism was celebrated in Kenya over the weekend, with dozens of people being united to Christ.

On Saturday, 46 people from the district of Kisii in Kenya were baptized at the parish of the Apostle Peter in Gesonso, reports the African Exarchate of the Moscow Patriarchate.

The Sacrament was celebrated by four priests.

Photo: exarchate-africa.ru     

The newly illumined became interested in Holy Orthodoxy through the weekly charity dinners held at the church. When they approached Fr. Hermogenes Otara, he introduced them to the Nicene Creed, answered their questions, and gave them material on the history of the Church.

A week later, they began to come for catechism, and after several weeks of intensive preparation, they were baptized into Christ.

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In preparation for the 2025 Jubilee Year, two of the massive entry doors at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., have been sealed.

Archbishop Timothy Broglio, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, blessed and sealed the two doors, which are scheduled to be reopened on Christmas Eve next year as a Holy Door for pilgrims. The ceremony took place on the first Sunday of Advent — a little more than one year before the start of the 2025 Jubilee Year, which will center on the theological virtue of hope.

“May this long-range planning for the holy year inspire our efforts so that 2025 will truly be a year of hope,” the archbishop said in his homily during Mass at the basilica. “We symbolically close a door this afternoon to anticipate its opening and the graces that will be offered to us.”

Broglio said the jubilee theme “Pilgrims of Hope” indicates that “we are on a journey and not pessimistic travelers,” highlighting the need for a message of hope amid ongoing crises around the world.

“We journey to the fullness of life,” the archbishop said. “You and I are charged to bring a message of hope to a world that desperately needs that gift. Think about the horrible fighting in the Holy Land where Israel wants security and the Palestinians a place to call home. War rages in Ukraine, where an innocent people longs to see the end of aggression. We remember Syria as well, where the common folk live in despair and constant need. We also want to bring hope to our neighbors in Haiti, where the hunger for stability and a plan for the future searches for resolution.”

Broglio tied the upcoming jubilee theme to the start of Advent, noting that “the notion that we must be ever prepared to meet the Lord when he summons us into his presence is not absent in these days [and] that thought is not meant to be frightening, but it is a call to open-eyed preparation in every day of the journey that is ours.” He also cited Pope Benedict XVI’s Angelus from Nov. 27, 2005: “Advent is the season in which Christians must rekindle in their hearts, the hope that they will be able with God’s help to renew the world.”

Boston, December 5, 2023

Photo: dneoca.org     

Several hierarchs of the Orthodox Church in America, headed by His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon of Washington and All America and Canada, gathered in Boston over the weekend to consecrate the new bishop for the Diocese of New England.

The previous hierarch, His Eminence Archbishop Nikon of Boston and New England and the Albanian Archdiocese reposed in the Lord on Archbishop Nikon of Boston (OCA) reposes in the Lord“He exhibited the best traits of a true leader—the ability to listen and the ability to act decisively. We saw him not only as our bishop, but as one of us.”

“>September 1, 2019. On OCA Synod elects next bishop of New England DioceseAt its session at Holy Trinity Cathedral in Chicago yesterday, the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church in America canonically elected the next bishop for the Diocese of New England.”>November 7 of this year, the OCA Synod formally named Hieromonk Benedict (Churchill) from North Carolina as bishop-elect, and on Saturday, December 2, he was consecrated to the episcopacy.

​Boxcast screenshot     

The OCA hierarchs were also joined by His Grace Bishop John of Worcester of the Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese and His Grace Bishop Irinej of the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Eastern America.

The Diocese of New England reports:

In an atmosphere of unparalleled joy and spiritual fervor, we celebrated the consecration of Archimandrite Benedict as the Bishop of Hartford and the New England Diocese, held in the magnificent Boston Orthodox Cathedral of the Holy Trinity. This momentous event, deeply rooted in ancient liturgical traditions, brought together clergy and laity in a resounding affirmation of our unity in faith. Bishop Benedict, ordained amidst the reverent gaze of sacred icons and the heartfelt prayers of the faithful, was adorned in the episcopal regalia, symbolizing his new role as a shepherd of God’s flock. The cathedral resounded with the thunderous chants of “Axios! Axios! Axios!”—a Greek acclamation declaring “He is worthy!”—echoing our collective acknowledgment of his divine calling. This historic day marks not just a new chapter in the life of Bishop Benedict but a reaffirmation of our commitment to the apostolic faith, guided by the teachings of the Bible and the wisdom of our Orthodox tradition. As we embark on this journey under Bishop Benedict’s guidance, we pray fervently for his ministry to be a beacon of Christ’s love, a faithful steward of the Church, and a nurturing father to the clergy and faithful of our diocese.

Boxcast screenshot     

The Divine Liturgy with the consecration of Bp. Benedict was broadcast and can be watched on Boxcast.

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I have a unique relationship with Mary. Like any mother and son, we’ve gone through ups and downs together. As a child, praying the rosary was often punishment for breaking the rules, usually disobedience against my parents. Not surprisingly, I resented it (though I’ve come to see some humor in that particular punishment for the offense).

As a young adult, the rosary became a comfort as I held it close with shaking hands through some of my life’s darkest and most broken moments. I cherished it.

I also have an image of Mary that was gifted to my wife and me on our wedding day that I meditate on often, yet there are other images of Mary that I find no connection with at all.

Perhaps that is the beauty of Marian imagery – it can speak to many people in many different ways.

One particular image to which I find myself particularly drawn is the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

It might be the story of the image that resonates — a humble farmer encounters Mary and, through his diligence, she offers an image that provides consolation and hope to the Mexican people (and to the world). The preservation of the tilma of St. Juan Diego, upon which that image is imprinted, is miraculous. But what resonates the most is Mary’s appearance, thereon.

She appears in a manner that speaks specifically to the people she is appearing to — not as an outsider, but a mother. The symbols in the image and her complexion are so indigenous to the region to the point that St. Juan Diego initially thought he beheld a native princess. In the initial apparition, Mary even speaks to him in his native language.

This should not surprise. Mary is our mother; by appearing in ways we best comprehend her, she leads us to Jesus.

In this movement of Eucharistic Revival, that can be a profound reflection for us as we gaze upon Our Lady of Guadalupe: Who are we uniquely suited to bring Christ to?

Revival is a grassroots effort; it happens within each one of us. There is no strict formula for revival outside of boldly living our faith and joyfully sharing it with others. And each of us can uniquely point to Christ and speak to specific groups of people. Each of us is a living “inculturation” of Jesus.

Sometimes, I worry that many of us resist publicly leaning into our faith out of fear it will strip away the unique attributes we possess and leave a stale version of what it is to be “Catholic.” But, there is no mold to fit into and no particular icon we need to replicate. There is a deposit of faith upon which we build our lives. Beyond that, we leverage the unique gifts, talents, cultural backgrounds, and experiences that we possess to share that faith with others.

Mary, human and not divine, shows us what the living inculturation of the Gospel looks like by revealing herself as one of the people to whom she appears. Juan Diego doesn’t see an outsider; he sees a mother and trusts her. In the same way, we encounter countless people who might not recognize many expressions of Catholicism – who would find them to seem foreign and “other,” — unless they come from something authentic within us.

We can be a native representation of Christ to others when we live our faith well.

Revival happens in these moments of living inculturation as we fulfill the mission uniquely entrusted to us — and if we all lean into that reality, revival doesn’t become a possibility but an inevitable outcome.

Allegan, Michigan, December 5, 2023

Photo: mitropolia.us     

The Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas will host a winter camp for young adults at the end of the month.

The Romanian Orthodo Youth of the Americas camp, held with the blessing of His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae, entitled “Tabăra de Dolinde” (Caroling Camp), will be held at the Protection of the Mother of God Monastery in Allegan, Michigan.

The Metropolia writes:

The winter camp is one of the most anticipated events of our organization, partly due to the extended time spent together and the manner in which we pass to the new year. It is a blessing to spend the final week of the year together and to begin the new year in communal prayer with other young people, sharing in spiritual joy and singing carols and patriotic songs.

Activities include:

• Divine Liturgy, Vigil, akathists, and the Paraklesis to the Mother of God

• Morning and evening prayers

• Outdoor activities (campfire, walks in nature, sports and games)

• Caroling rehearsals + caroling concert

• Patriotic songs + Romanian traditions

• Conferences/discussions with special guests

For more information, visit the registration page: https://forms.gle/1yKkH1RNPnxWZqZj9.

The Serbian Orthodox Church’s New Gračanica Monastery is also New Gračanica Monastery (Illinois) hosting high school winter retreatThe Serbian Orthodox Church’s New Gračanica Monastery is hosting a winter retreat for high schools this year on the topic, “Thy Will Be Done: Living Out My Faith in Today’s Society.”

“>hosting a winter retreat for high school students from December 26 to 30.

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A deadly bomb that exploded during a Mass Dec. 3 killed at least four people and injured dozens at a university in a predominantly Muslim city in southern Philippines.

Media reports that the explosion caused panic among dozens of students and teachers in a gymnasium where Mass was taking place, at Mindanao State University in Marawi, capital of Lanao del Sur province. At least four people were killed, and nearly 50 others were brought to two hospitals for treatment, authorities said. The explosion took place at around 7 a.m. local time.

Later that day, Islamic State militants claimed responsibility for the deadly blast, according to Reuters and The New York Times.

After praying the Angelus, Pope Francis assured the attack’s victims of his prayers. He added that “I am close to the families, to the people of Mindanao who have already suffered so much.”

In a telegram, addressed to Bishop Edwin de la Peña of Marawi, the pope also said he was “deeply saddened to be informed of the injuries and loss of life caused by the bombing,” according to Vatican News.

Nearly 80% of the population in the Philippines — which according to U.S. government estimates has 114.6 million people — is Catholic. According to a census conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority, about 6% of the population identifies as Muslim.

In 2017, Marawi saw a five-month battle between government forces and Islamic militants aligned with the Islamic State, which left over 1,000 dead, including some civilians, and displaced around 100,000 people. International forces helped the army to regain control of the besieged city.

Prior to Islamic State militants claiming responsibility, authorities had called the explosion a “terror attack,” and regional military commander Maj. Gen. Gabriel Viray III said they were trying to identify those responsible, according to Reuters. The motive was yet to be determined, but police were investigating the possibility of Muslim militants’ involvement.

Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. condemned the attack on the social media platform X Dec. 3, offering condolences to the victims’ loved ones, urging calm and promising that the perpetrators will be brought to justice.

“I condemn in the strongest possible terms the senseless and most heinous acts perpetrated by foreign terrorists,” he said. “Extremists who wield violence against the innocent will always be regarded as enemies to our society.”

He added that the armed forces and police have been instructed “to ensure the protection and safety of civilians and the security of affected and vulnerable communities.”

Lanao del Sur Gov. Mamintal Alonto Adiong Jr. was swift to condemn the attack. “Here in my province, we uphold basic human rights, and that includes the right to religion,” said Adiong, who has visited with victims at a nearby hospital, according to ABS-CBN media network.

“Terroristic attacks on educational institutions must also be condemned because these are places that promote the culture of peace and mold our youth to be the future shapers of this country,” Adiong said.

Mindanao State University said it was “deeply saddened” and “appalled” by the act of violence, saying that “violence has no place in a civilized society, and it is particularly abhorrent in an institution of higher learning like MSU.”

“We unequivocally condemn in the strongest possible terms this senseless and horrific act and extend our heartfelt condolences to the victims and their families,” it said in a statement posted on Facebook. “Our immediate priority is to ensure the safety and well-being of all constituents, particularly our Christian community.”

The university said its classes were suspended until further notice and that additional security staff would be present on its campus.

In an update, the university said that after working with authorities, it was determined that there was no need to evacuate the campus or to put it in lockdown, but it urged caution and asked students to “remain in their dormitories, boarding houses, and homes inside the campus until further notice.”

According to ABS-CBN, Cardinal Orlando B. Quevedo, a member of the Council of Leaders in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, also strongly decried the attack and sent his condolences to the victims’ families.

“The massacre at the Mindanao State University Gym in Marawi City during Sunday Mass this morning is a crime that literally cries out to heaven,” he said. “Perpetrated on the 1st Sunday of Advent, a season of hope, and at the beginning of the Mindanao Week of Peace, the massacre is the most terrible and most damnable terroristic crime against innocent worshippers on a Christian holy day.”

At a press conference with Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, Gen. Romeo Brawner, chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, said that the military had killed 11 Islamic militants Dec. 1. They were members of the Dawlah Islamiyah, a group that has aligned with the Islamic State group and that, according to AP, still has a presence in Lanao del Sur province. There were also two other operations in the following days in Mindanao that targeted Islamic militants.

Brawner said military leaders were working to determine whether the university attack was in retaliation to the gains of the military against militant groups.

According to The Associated Press, the Dec. 3 explosion set off alarms beyond the Lanao del Sur province area, as the Advent and Christmas season “ushered in a period of travel, shopping sprees and traffic jams” across the predominantly Catholic country.

The Philippine coast guard “ordered all its personnel to intensify intelligence gathering, stricter inspections of passenger ferries and the deployment of bomb-sniffing dogs and sea marshals following the suspected bomb attack,” AP said.

In the capital city of Manila, Filipino Muslims gathered to pray in solidarity with the victims of the bombing attack, according to photos from news agencies.

The Dec. 3 telegram with the pope’s message was signed by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who was representing Pope Francis at COP28 in Dubai. It assured the people of the Holy Father’s spiritual closeness amid this tragedy, commended the souls of those who died to God’s mercy, and prayed for “the divine gifts of healing and consolation upon the injured and bereaved.”

The pope concluded his message, praying that “Christ the Prince of Peace Christ the Prince of Peace will grant to all the strength to turn from violence and overcome every evil with good.”

Penza, Penza Province, Russia, December 5, 2023

Photo: пензенская-епархия.рф     

A miraculous, myrrh-streaming icon of the holy Tsar-Martyr Nicholas II was carried in procession throughout the city of Penza, 400 mile southeast of Moscow, on Sunday, December 3.

The icon was delivered to the Holy Theophany Church by His Eminence Metropolitan Seraphim of Penza, who served a festive moleben and then led the procession to the Christ the Savior Cathedral, reports the Penza Diocese.

Addressing the participants in the cathedral, Met. Seraphim said: “Now each of you will have the chance to pray before the icon of Tsar Nicholas the Passion-bearer, to venerate this image and ask him not to leave us, our city, and our God-protected country without his intercession.”

Photo: пензенская-епархия.рф     

The procession is timed to coincide with the display of the exhibition, “The Royal Family: Love and Mercy,” organized by Moscow’s Sretensky Monastery. The Exhibition on charitable work of Royal Family on display near Moscow’s Sretensky MonasteryThe exhibition, which was prepared by the Sretensky brethren, mainly features and photos and material dedicated to the service of the Empress Alexandra and the Grand Duchesses as sisters of mercy in the infirmaries and hospitals during WWI.

“>same exhibition was earlier set up in Moscow just outside the monastery.

The icon of Tsar Nicholas was painted in 1996 by the iconographer Pavel Tikhomirov. The paper lithograph, presented to the Moscow surgeon Oleg Ivanovich Belchenko, began streaming myrrh on November 7, 1998, and the phenomenon continues to this day. The icon has visited many cities of Russia and abroad when not at the Church of the Holy Nine Martyrs of Cyzicus in Moscow.

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ROME — Suppose you’re a progressive German Catholic these days, excited by the reform course sketched by your country’s Synodal Way, especially its resolutions calling for a reevaluation of Church teaching on women’s ordination and homosexuality.

If so, no doubt you’re a bit concerned about recent statements from Rome seeming to throw cold water on those ideas, including a letter from Pope Francis to four female theologians warning that Germany is moving “increasingly away from the universal Church’s common path” and a Vatican letter to the secretary of the German bishops’ conference bluntly warning that women priests and questioning the sinfulness of homosexual acts are no-fly zones.

The question you might have about all this, however, is how seriously to take it. In other words, it’s clear the Vatican is warning Germany to slow down, but should this be taken as a yellow light — “proceed with caution” — or red, meaning “stop right now”?

If you’re a hypothetical German Catholic thinking along these lines, you’re probably also aware that yours is not the only national church around the Catholic world with which Pope Francis recently has been wrestling.

You undoubtedly know that last month the pope fired an American bishop, Joseph Strickland of Tyler, Texas, and also recently decided to strip American Cardinal Raymond Burke of his Vatican apartment and salary. Both acts were clearly seen as drawing lines in the sand for the conservative-traditionalist wing of American Catholicism, basically saying that you can’t publicly defy the teaching and authority of the pope and expect to remain on the Church’s payroll.

It also won’t have escaped your attention that at least so far, the pope has not taken similar actions with regard to anyone involved in the German situation. You might be tempted to conclude that whatever the issues with Germany may be, they don’t rise to the level of a firing offense and, therefore, that there’s still some wiggle room to keep moving forward.

That, in a nutshell, would seem to be the problem Francis faces: how to get across to the German church that “no means no”?

Granted, the situations are different.

Strickland has all but accused the pope of heresy and schism, and also has quoted from a letter describing Francis as a “usurper.” In addition, an apostolic visitation reportedly turned up various administrative problems in his diocese, though their precise nature has not been identified. Burke, while more circumspect, nevertheless has lent his support to people who espouse similar positions, and has also twice now been part of a group of cardinals submitting critical “dubia” to the pontiff challenging his positions on various issues.

Meanwhile, the German bishops supportive of the Synodal Way have not engaged in any such direct criticism of the pope. Indeed, prelates such as Bishop Georg Bätzing of Limburg, president of the German bishops’ conference, generally go out of their way to stress their filial devotion to Rome and to the pope. 

(Last January, Bätzing did grouse out loud that Francis’ “way of leading the Church by way of interviews” is “extremely questionable,” but if every Catholic bishop in the world who questioned the wisdom of the pope’s media strategy were to be fired, the list of vacant dioceses would be awfully long.)

During October’s Synod of Bishops on Synodality, Bishop Franz Josef Overbeck of Essen, another major proponent of the German experiment, rejected the idea that the country is drifting out of the orbit of the universal Church.

“Many people have asked me, ‘Are you still Catholics and part of the Catholic Church?” said Overbeck. “And I say, ‘Yes, of course, we are Catholics, and we are here to stay.’ ” 

So, in the American case the pope was responding to prelates who, albeit in varying ways, were engaged in public criticism of his leadership, while the Germans often seem to do everything in their power to play down impressions of a rift.

Yet one could make the argument, and many do, that linguistic legerdemain aside, what’s happening in Germany does represent a challenge to papal (and, more broadly, episcopal) authority every bit as serious as anything suggested by the likes of Strickland and Burke. 

The Germans, for instance, so far appear determined to press ahead with plans for the creation in 2026 of a “synodal council,” composed of both laity and bishops, which would have as yet loosely defined governing powers over the Church. This development comes despite the fact that in a January letter signed by three Vatican heavyweights, the Germans were explicitly told that doing so would amount to an unacceptable surrender on the exclusive role of the bishop to teach and to govern.

The average German Catholic might be forgiven, however, for wondering if such verbal warnings amount to sound and fury signifying nothing, as long as the prelates signing off on these decisions do not suffer any consequences for doing so.

At the moment, the German bishops are scheduled to take part in meetings with Vatican officials in January, April, and June 2024 to discuss their Synodal Way, and presumably the agenda on Rome’s side will be to rein in at least some of the centrifugal energies swirling in the German church.

The question for Pope Francis may be how to get across that he’s serious — including the possibility of adopting, however reluctantly, an “American solution” for one or two recalcitrant German prelates too.

Rising above the 7th Arrondissement of Paris is the gold dome of Les Invalides, a landmark that serves as both a French military museum and the final resting place of the nation’s greatest general, Napoleon Bonaparte.

The engravings surrounding his sarcophagus depict him as one of the ancients, adorned with laurels and togas next to tablets listing his vast accomplishments.

Napoleon’s legacy as both a military mastermind and a statesman is hard to summarize — and complicated to assess. Similarly, there’s just too much to the man to capture in a single film.

Still, the tagline of celebrated director Ridley Scott’s new “Napoleon” — released in theaters Nov. 22 — promises an ambitious attempt: “He came from nothing. He conquered everything.”

For better or worse, those words are where the film’s respect for Napoleon ends.

There is nothing of Napoleon’s rise from obscurity in Corsica to the top of the French Republic, nor mention of his early military victories. The years that he spent building the charisma and political capital to seize power as First Consul and eventually as the self-crowned emperor go unnoticed. Viewing “Napoleon” in a vacuum, one might wonder: How did France become an empire? And who even is this guy?

Instead, the Napoleon introduced to viewers (played by Joaquin Phoenix) is reduced to a simp for his first wife Josephine (Vanessa Kirby) and, frankly, a bore.

The historical Napoleon is remembered for his energy, inquisitiveness, charm, and ability to micromanage the French Empire. But Scott’s Napoleon spends much of his screen time sitting forlornly on couches or behaving depravedly with Josephine, rather than leading his men in the throes of battle or engaging in geopolitical power plays with Russia, Austria, the Vatican, and his notorious adversary, Britain. 

The director seems more inclined to show Phoenix’s Napoleon sleeping (for comedic effect) than doing anything interesting with his troops (apart from him passing out bread to several soldiers during the doomed Moscow campaign).

Scott’s strange inversions don’t stop there. While Napoleon has long been portrayed as a little man in stature (although in reality, he was average height for his day) but a big one in thought, will, and power, the on-screen version is the opposite. 

After being told of Josephine’s affair while in Egypt, Napoleon returns to France to ragefully confront his wife. As a command, he warns that she is nothing without him. But it is a threat with no foundation, for this position of power is quickly reversed in the next scene with Josephine repeating the same words. 

Josephine, we are made to understand, was truly the master of the relationship, while Napoleon was nothing more than a whimpering cuckold. It’s a notion that seems to drive the whole film: Napoleon was not really in command (this is even demonstrated when his cold, demanding mother convinces her sheepish son to have relations with a young woman to breed an heir for the empire).

By elevating Josephine as his prime motivation in several major events (including inaccurately suggesting she was the reason he left Elba during his first exile), Scott’s Napoleon is merely an angsty, boyish man.

His military maxims — ones that are still studied today — are also spurned. Beyond his strategizing for Waterloo, his greatest and last defeat that led to his second exile, Napoleon’s tact briefly shines forth during the Battle of Austerlitz, arguably his greatest victory; while cinematic, even Scott’s Austerlitz sequence rings hollow because it disregards the historical truth (and the French Army’s battleplan) for the myth — that thousands died as Napoleon’s artillery fired at the ice underneath the retreating Austrian and Russian troops. 

In truth, only a dozen bodies have been found. But the myth masks the traps Napoleon laid; even in his greatest victory, the general cannot “win the day” in Scott’s “Napoleon.” Napoleon’s war victories — the most of any leader in history — are all enshrined on the tablets in Les Invalides but omitted in the film.

Scott seems uninterested in compensating for such omissions with other aspects of history. For example: The French Revolution and the Enlightenment, two other historical realities that are crucial to understanding what “made” Napoleon, appear nowhere in the movie.

Ultimately, his love and friendship with Josephine are not enough to present “Napoleon’s” portrait of its main subject as flesh and blood.

Les Invalides’ monuments are not flesh and blood either, but they convey a sense of the man’s standing in history. But “Napoleon” leaves us wondering why this man is even worth remembering at all. The film does not wrestle with his legacy, criticize his mythic stature, or explore what made him tick beyond sexual desires and dynastic aspirations. There is only one moment on St. Helena when the famed general — who, at this point, has lost everything he loved, including Josephine — purports a false narrative of himself that is easily debunked by two young girls.

The scene, however, is not enough to counter Napoleon’s self-aggrandizement and mitigating responsibility for blunders in his memoirs (which the film also fails to portray). “Napoleon” shortchanges its protagonist in too many respects to the point where the film’s tagline is meaningless, baseless like the character’s command to his wife. By the end, the viewer does not know where he came from, what he conquered, and how he should be regarded today.

The lifeless and hollow Napoleon of Scott’s film would be unworthy of a shrine in Paris that more than 1 million tourists visit per year — or, perhaps, even a movie more than 200 years after his death.