I have known Argentina as a
great footballing country that has produced some of the greatest players to
have graced the world’s much loved sport - football. Talk of the great Diego ‘Amando’
Maradona of yester-years and now Barcelona’s Lionel Messi. Jorge Cardinal
Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, has been added to that list of great Argentines
who have shaped this world.
When his name was announced as the man to have risen to the head of the Catholic Church, little did it click
my mind who this man is. But by asking us to pray for him before he could give
us his blessing soon after his election left me thrilled by this mark of
humility. The world certainly needs “a shepherd who is close to his sheep”. This
is what has been said by many people about the new Pope.
From what we are reading
concerning his life, he is a man who has chosen simplicity in the world where
many use their positions to amass wealth and live in vanity. By the choice of
Francis, he has again shown that he wants to identify himself with the poor
like St. Francis of Assisi did. We are told Pope Francis had “a reputation as a
humble pastor who even in high office commuted to work by bus, lived in a small
palace rather that an apostolic palace and cooked his own meals”.
The argument as to which
Francis he has chosen as his guiding model was put to rest on Saturday 16th
March, when he addressed journalists. This is what he said: “During the
elections, the Emeritus Archbishop of San Paulo, Claudio Cardinal Humes (OFM),
a great friend, when things were becoming dangerous he was comforting me. And
when the number of votes was reaching two-thirds, there was the usual applause
because the pope was elected. He hugged me… then he said don’t forget the poor
and then that word just stuck with me – the poor. Then I immediately thought of
Francis of Assisi.
In case you want to read more
about St. Francis follow this link:
Pope Francis described Francis
of Assisi as “the man that represents poverty, that represents peace. He is the
man who loves and looks after what has been created.” This he said is what he
wants to do for the church and for the world. The new pope said he wants to
preside over “a poor church for the poor”. During his address to the journalists,
he called upon them to use their professional skills to represent well the
gospel and the reality of the church.
Through the meeting with
journalists, Pope Francis has demonstrated his love and appreciation for the
role of the media in society. Journalists report what is bad and good,
beautiful and truthful. This according to the new pope is what the church
equally represents, therefore the two must work together to advance the mission
of Christ. The meeting with the journalists gave us more insight into the life
of Pope Francis.
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