Francis I was born today in a cloud of white smoke when Father Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected as the new pope.
Father Bergoglio is the first pope to adopt the name Francis. It could be viewed as symbolic. His Holiness is the first-ever Jesuit pope, the first pope from the southern hemisphere, and the first South American pope. In fact, there’s never been an American pope. He succeeds Benedict XVI, the first pope to step down in 598 years. And Francis is the first non-European pope in 1200 years.
Pope Francis
Pope Francis holds traditional societal views and opposes abortion, euthanasia, and gay marriage. He is not swayed by popular movements nor condemnation from the government. It makes me think – probably inappropriately – of a line in a Johnny Cash song: A spirit who would not bend of break, Who would sit at his father’s right hand
The new pope may put a stop to the church’s slow progress into the future. I mean this in a positive way. It is refreshing in this day and age of political correctness to have a pope who calls things by their real names, even when those names describe the powerful, the famous, and the beautiful, and even when they are trademarked by wealthy corporations.
The pope will uphold tradition, but expect him to do more than simply maintain the status quo. He chose his name in honor of Francis of Assissi, the saint who shunned worldly comforts for a life of poverty. His Holiness is a fierce advocate for the poor and disadvantaged. In 2001, Francis remarked bitterly that while poor people are persecuted for demanding work, rich people are applauded for fleeing from justice. He did not mince words when he spoke to wealthy listeners: “You avoid taking into account the poor. We have no right to duck-down, to lower the arms carried by those in despair.”
This isn’t lip service to the poorest among us. Francis, then Father Bergoglio, rejected the luxuries he earned through his senior status and a lifetime of devotion to the Catholic Church. He opted instead for an ascetic existence: he chose a one-bedroom apartment over the Archdiocesan palace, the bus over the Church’s limousine, and he cooked for himself rather than accepting the servants the Church would supply.
The Catholic Church is in grave distress. There is a desperate need for a man who is willing to confront the ills in society — moreover, a leader who will address the crimes committed by the priests within the church. We need someone who will make difficult decisions to do what is right even when it is not popular. Francis must be that man. God help the Catholic Church if he is not.
Pope Francis emerged on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica for the first time this evening, and gave a blessing to the crowds who had been waiting in the square for hours in the rain. Then he spoke a message to the world’s billion Catholics who have been waiting for years for a strong leader to emerge. “My brother cardinals have chosen one who is from far away,” he said. “But here I am.”
The church is providing 1st century answers to 21 century problems that is why the church needs to join the modern era. There is nothing biblical that says women shouldn’t be ordained or that priests should be celibate. Why does the Church continue to maintain these artificial divides? It would seem to me that you would have a stronger Church if both sexes were in the room and could actively vote when it’s time to select the next Pope. I think modern society has already proven this to some degree.
That’s not completely true. There is something Biblical that says women shouldn’t speak in church – I think in Corinthians. The celibate priests are much more subjective. But I think your overall point is that the Church needs to move with the times, and I disagree entirely. The Catholic Church’s strength is rooted in tradition. Its appeal is that it doesn’t change, like the Word of God is unchanging. When this formula is tampered with, it begins a slow decay.
I wish I shared your hopefulness. As a former Catholic, I do not care what really happens. The changes to bring the church into the modern era are to numerous to name. However, make this one change. Keep mass in the local tongue instead of returning to Latin. I did not know that God preferred Latin vs. English, Spanish, or any language. How does this benefit the flock? Why keep a dead language still alive? Does it conjure up happier times of the church?
But why should the church join the modern era? Modernity has been destructive to the church. Vatican II was an effort at modernization, and it left the Church splintered and weak. Local language mass was a by-product, but I think the real issue is what the Church ends up wading into. questions like should women be ordained? should priests have to be celibate? are asked with an eye towards ‘modernizing’ and they cause unnecessary conflict and in-fighting.