I would guess that the feet washing controversy is settled now. It appears that Jesus meant the priesthood is to serve all human beings. Or, at least, that’s the message I take away from the simple act that Pope Francis performed at the Casal del Marmo today. After delivering what sounds like a very clear homily in which he explained the meaning of what he was about to do, he washed the feet of 12 young inmates, two of them... Read more
For I was in prison, and you visited me. Pope Francis will wash the feet of incarcerated young people tonight. Some of them have no faith. Others are Muslim. Many of them did not even know who the Pope was when they first heard he was coming. Many Catholics, particularly those in prison ministry, are overjoyed by this act. But there are others who find it off-putting, even a bit scandalous. They expect the Pope to wash the feet of... Read more
“At last, I shall get to meet someone who says he is my father!” The Holy Father is teaching us evangelization by doing it. That was the opinion of a virtual friend of mine after reading this press release. I couldn’t agree more. From the Vatican website: 2013-03-27 L’Osservatore Romano Forty-nine young people, the inmates of the Roman borstal, Casal del Marmo, are preparing to receive an extraordinary gift. Pope Francis will go there in the afternoon of Holy Thursday,... Read more
In suffering, I accept. Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio We’ll get the chance to learn more about our new Holy Father next week, when Vatican Television Center releases a documentary about him, Francis: The Election of a Pope from the Ends of the Earth. Probably because of the slanderous gossip that has been promoted in some circles, they’ve given us a spoiler. Cardinal Begoglio’s words on his election were: I am a great sinner confident in the patience and mercy of... Read more
1. I am a Catholic because Christ in the Eucharist called me for years and a good priest opened the doors and let me in. 2. I am a Christian — which happened before I became a Catholic — because Christ in the Holy Spirit called me. He called me throughout my anti-religion years. 3. St Peter told Jesus: Where else would we go? You alone have the words that lead to eternal life. That was true then. It’s true... Read more
What the Court says in questions does not necessarily reflect how they will rule. However, two days’ of questioning concerning Proposition 8, which was heard yesterday and the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which was heard today, seems to form a consistent pattern. The justices have remarked twice now on the fact that marriage has always been a state issue. I don’t know if that’s an indicator of how they will rule, but I sincerely hope so. I think it... Read more
If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. Jesus Christ Remember the beautiful moment in his inauguration when Pope Francis stopped the procession, got out and blessed the disabled man? Remember the expression on that man’s face as he looked up at the Holy Father? That moment was the whole event, perhaps the papacy and the Church itself, caught in one man’s face as he looked at his pope. At least it was for me. ... Read more
Is Pope Francis God’s instrument for leading us away from “tepid Christianity” and “mediocrity in our faith?” Archbishop Charles Chaput thinks so. Overwhelming percentages of practicing Catholics are like me — delighted with our new pope. However, there is disquiet in some quarters, mostly from people who loved the symbols of high office which Pope Francis has eschewed. The people I know who feel this way are certainly not “tepid” Catholics. They are far better Catholics than I am... Read more
He lives with his employees, and it appears he likes it. Who? Pope Francis. The Holy Father told those attending this morning’s mass that he plans to continue living in the Casa Stanta Marta rather than move into the papal apartment. This residence normally houses Vatican employees. This pope lived shunned the Archbishop’s residence in Buenos Aires to live in a small apartment when he was a cardinal. He begins the days of his Pontificate with a morning mass that... Read more
I’ve read that the ancients used to slaughter a goat and study its entrails to try to predict the future. Others made tea and studied how the tea leaves settled to the bottom of the cup for the same purpose. We all want to know what’s going to happen. We’re smart enough to anticipate, but not prescient enough to know. This human conundrum has kept fortune tellers and sooth sayers of one sort or the other in business for all... Read more
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