Habemus Papam

 

When the first swirls of white smoke unfurled from the Sistine Chapel and plumed the skies over St. Peter’s Square on March 13, 2013, signaling the election of a new pope the throngs of pilgrims waiting below cheered as they customarily  do for a new vicar of Christ on earth. It’s the most exciting ritual in the Catholic Church. Drama, intrigue, speculation all culminating in a medieval Baroque coronation.

With the installation of Pope Francis, there seemed a marked  difference from his  two predecessors. The obvious, of course, was that he was from South America and the first pontiff elected in the modern era from somewhere other than Europe. But he seemed humble, reticent.

John Paul II was an outspoken critic of  Communism. His contributions and  support for Solidarnosc, the Polish Union who resisted the Soviet puppet government of Prime Minister Jaruzelski nearly cost him his life. No one would question his leadership or bravery  during his tenure. Benedict XVI also made many contributions to the church.  His were mainly canonical in nature. Both, however, were intransigent ideologues, resisting any changes to the traditionalist tenets of Catholicism. Nor did they offer any prescient insights concerning the emerging issues facing the Catholic Church during their reigns, foremost: pedophilia, homosexuality, abortion and contraception.

Not only has Francis  shed light on these issues he has spoken up and  faulted the church for being “obsessed”  with gays, abortion and contraception. He has tasked himself with making the church a “home for all.”

"The church has sometimes locked itself up in small things, in small-minded rules,” the pontiff has been quoted as saying. "The people of God want pastors, not clergy acting like bureaucrats or government officials."

Nor do they want to see the wealth of the Church wasted on the shepherds instead of the flock. A story emerged recently when Francis saw a high-ranking church official  waiting for a car to pick him up. He asked the clergyman where he was going. When he was told of the destination, only a short distance from where they were standing, he asked him –can’t you walk?

The most egregious ostentation has now been noted in the Holy Father’s suspension of German bishop, Franz Tebartz-van Elst, the so-called “Bishop of Bling.” The Most  Reverend Franz Tebartz-van Elst, and the most profligate, is said to have spent $42 million renovating his residence in Limburg. Forty-two million dollars! How many hungry people could have been fed; how many children could have been spared from depravity and adequately clothed or cared for with such a sum? Is the clergy a calling or a career choice? Makes you wonder.

  Francis reflects the  lifestyle of a true pastor. He is a man who carries his own bags; lives a simple existence in a humble apartment eschewing the pretentious trappings of his office. I wouldn’t be surprised if someday we hear the chants of “Santo subito; Santo subito,” echo once again.