Bergoglio the Teacher

In last Friday’s A Lesson for Creative People, I passed on a story about then Jorge Bergoglio’s teaching and the lesson he taught a clever thought. The student, now the Argentine writer Jorge Milia, said more about his old teacher in an interview published by CNS, which I just found when searching for information about Milia.

Related to the subject of last Friday’s item, he said:

His unwavering vocation (was) to not let us founder, to entrust us with concrete goals, to convince us what counted was working methodically, every day and not trying just to wing it.

Milia tells another, similar story whose relation to the one in the book isn’t clear.

Milia said his own parents were especially grateful to the young priest “for knowing how to deal with me. I was an unruly adolescent. He didn’t try to limit my exuberance, but sought to channel it in a positive way, giving it structure” and purpose.”

Father Bergoglio actually flunked Milia in literature his senior year, he said, “even though I was a member of the Academy of Literature” and a co-author of a collection of short stories.

The former student said he had failed to hand in an assignment and study for the test. Even though he did OK on the final, his grade average was poor. “Deep down, I was asking for it, and this didn’t make him happy at all,” he said.

The Jesuit teacher wanted the students to understand the importance of diligent, dedicated work and being responsible. Being called out on his poor attitude and lack of effort was something “I’ll always be grateful to him for,” Milia said.