On more then one occasion, I have listened to Pope Francis
speak, and all I can say is, “What a breath of fresh air.” There are over a
billion Catholics in this world and for one of the first times in my fifty-five
years of being one, there seems to be a man at the top who truly cares about,
not only the church he leads but those outside of the Catholic Church too. Gone
is much of the hard line rhetoric that the church has engaged in, in the past,
and here with Francis, are those conciliatory gestures meant to soften that
rigid stance and seem more sincere to all of us, in a fast changing world.
There is an old saying that “you can catch more bees with
honey then vinegar.” I think Pope Francis recognizes this and in his embrace of
the poor and seemingly unfaithful he is saying, “I’ll take the high road here
and if you will listen to me, I will listen to you.” I think this gesture when
he became pope, in taking the name of the beloved Saint Francis, in of itself,
was meant to say to the Catholic leaders and the faithful. “I want my papacy to
be more about love and caring, and not just promoting and governing the
Catholic Church.” St. Francis of Assisi was the epitome of serving others and
in reality, he, a humble Friar was never ordained as a Catholic Priest. He
didn’t need that kind of support to become what he was. He simply led by his
own quiet, humble, example and Catholics and non-Catholics alike revere him and
now the leader of the church, is emulating him.
The popularity of this Pope provides the real evidence that
this is a man for all people and not just those who pledge obedience to him
because he is their leader. When I was a young man I was the oldest of eight
children. My father continually warned me that I needed to set a good example
for my siblings. That they looked up to me and they would copy me. Pope Francis
knows the world is watching him too and he is setting that example we all need
to follow. Influential leaders are hard to find in this world. When one does
come along that seems to have many followers and even some with no spiritual
connection to him, it is heartwarming indeed. It shows that people still
recognize and will follow someone who seems sincere and gives them hope for a
better life.
As for the Catholic Church there is always room for
improvement and Pope Francis is doing that. Weeding out waste and
inconsistencies. Challenging Cardinals, Priests and Bishops to clean up their
act and remember what their true vocation is all about and policing those who
have gone astray instead of hiding them. It is doubtful that the Pope will
orchestrate much change in the rules the church lives by. Those rules are the
bedrock of a religion that has existed for over two thousand years. But before
this Pope is done we may all have a better understanding of why the rules can’t
be changed and not—“just because I told you so.” We also may have a better idea
of why people are leaving the Catholic faith and how to interest them again.
But the biggest thing that may come out of all of it is, starting a dialogue
between other faiths and people without any faith, because we will never
understand each other, until we get to know, love and respect each other.
Submitted by Mike Holst 14042 Big Pine Trail Crosslake MN.
56442 218 851 0386
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