Our Pope

Unlike his predecessors, he is no wordsmith; he is not a brilliant theologian; he will not be a doctor of the Church. Like his namesake from Assisi, he teaches…not with words…but with actions, with his life. He is my father; and I love him! Entirely in communion and continuity with the prior dual-pontificate in substance, he is a refreshing change in style. At his election I was glad the Cardinals did not choose an outstanding theologian because the legacy of our previous two is so rich it will take 100 years to assimilate. He is free, spontaneous, unscripted, raw, human, fallible, genuine, and free. He is awkward and goofy, but in a disarmingly gracious manner. The Church, because of its invincible unity, has a genius for diversity (catholicity): whether it is parish, diocese or papacy, the change of regime is always a reversal…the crack administrator replaces an incompetent one, the saint is followed by a man of the world, a slacker by a workaholic, and the scholar by an anti-intellectual. Always on offer: something new, fresh, surprising, annoying, upsetting, challenging and consoling! He calls us out of complacency to move to the fringes, to the poor, to the marginalized. He realizes, I hope, how much so many of us are ourselves poor and weak, desperately in need of being strengthened in our families, communities, prayer and inner selves. The centripetal and centrifugal energies of the Holy Spirit need to fructify each other: we cannot give away our riches and become poor until we are rich in faith. But he is my father; and I love him! He is refreshing. He is free. He teaches by his way, not by his words. He shoots from the hip; he has loose lips; he says silly things. We will have to get used to him: comments thrown off on an airplane or in an interview are very far from the infallibility of the Chair. He is my father. And I love him! He insults and scandalizes precisely those who love him the most: those who sent him spiritual bouquets, those who would protect the life of the innocent, the chastity of the young, and the integrity of the family. But he is human…a poor sinner, fallible and weak…and so I love him and forgive him and support him. He is my father, and I love him! He is my captain, my king, and I follow him. The editors of AMERICA magazine are happy that he speaks like a brother not a king. But I do not need another buddy; I have plenty. I need a Father, a King, a genuine Authority figure! My father’s cousin Walter, who had lost his Catholic faith, had occasion to see Pope Pius XII during WWII and said: “He seems like a nice fellow.” Nice fellows and buddies are a dime a dozen! In my pope I want a father, not a buddy. He is my father, even if he doesn't always speak that way, and I love him! He cares about the poor and seems to dismiss concerns about sexuality and marriage. I hope he realizes that, at least in the USA, poverty is mainly rooted in infidelity, betrayal and unchastity. The poor desperately need the full Gospel…especially the Theology of the Body. I hope that he will advance, rather than ignore (with most of his Jesuit brothers) this precious body of work by our soon-to-be-Saint-John-Paul! Despite his neglect and imperfection, he is my father and I love him! He is worried that the Church come across as a body of detached rules, mostly about sex. In my world, we have been afflicted, from the pulpit, for half a century by a steady stream of moralism of the “do-gooder” social activist type…and complete silence about chastity of the body, mind and spirit. His own remarks could be understood to affirm this catastrophe, although that is not his intent. Wisdom is not his strong suit, but he is my father. And I love him. His political economics are just about right…in the Catholic middle…infatuated with neither the free market nor the expansive state…he values solidarity, subsidiarity and liberty…and cares deeply for the least. He is my leader, my captain, my exemplar…and I follow him. We, especially the lay faithful, will have to complement and correct his magisterium as this loving and holy man is markedly deficient as authoritative teacher of the faith. But he is my father; and I love him!