I WAS shuffling through some papers early last week for my small talk on the Church under Pope Francis for the Men’s Night. One short summary I read was from Jesuit Fr Frank Brennan. He is a friend of mine and I am not averse to disagreeing with him but I share it for those interested.
“Pope Francis’s concerns are not narrowly dogmatic or pedagogical but universally pastoral. He knows that millions of people, including erstwhile Catholics, are now suspicious of or not helped by notions of tradition, authority, ritual and community when it comes to their own spiritual growth which is now more individual and eclectic.
He wants to step beyond the Church’s perceived lack of authenticity and its moral focus on individual matters, more often than not, sexual. He thinks the world is in a mess particularly with regard to the planet – climate change, loss of biodiversity and water shortages, but also with the oppression of the poor whose life basics are not assured by the operation of the free market, and with the clutter and violence of lives which are cheated the opportunity for interior peace.
He is going to great pains to demystify his Office. He wants all people of good will to emulate him and to be both joyful and troubled as they wrestle with the problems of the age. He is putting a spring in our step and providing us with a new sense of direction and purpose as Church in the World.”