Allow me to speak my mind, because I've been thinking about the Pope lately, and how he's being interpreted by the media. His apparent de-emphasis on contraception, abortion and gay marriage I think is allowing what the Church really is to be at the forefront, as it should be! Pope Francis is displaying his faith by not trying to incessantly "combat" this "trinity of evils," while inadvertently combating them! Who'd a thunk? Read on to hear how...
Who is likely to be drawn in to a place, a community, that is portrayed as the "No" authority? I wouldn't, even if I knew deep down those "no's" were for my own good. I would want to know why I couldn't or shouldn't do something. I would want to know why with my heart! I think most people feel the same way. Pope Francis, by focusing on the preferential option for the poor, is allowing the Church to be more appealing to more people. What's more attractive to the heart? a) You're a bad person if you act in ways that are considered immoral..or b) Hey, right now let's help out the poor!
As many people, including myself, view the Church, she is a living, breathing being: the Mystical Body of Christ. We are members of the Church, we are each members of Christ's Mystical Body, with all of our different functions, personalities, characteristics, talents, and sins. I think Pope Francis, along with many, know the inherent power the Church has to affect change. Not that this power is man-made, or because of man, but because the Holy Spirit breathes through the Church and is her life-blood. How else could she have survived all the scandals, dishonesty, and sin that stained her throughout her approximately 2,000 years of existence? This isn't your Grandma's bible study we're dealing with!
So, as more and more people are drawn to the Church because of its genuine compassion for the poor, hearts will slowly but surely be more awakened to why the church says "no" to some things, because she is saying "yes" to something better, something beyond this life. God knows that sin hurts us, far more than we do.
Pope Francis is letting the beautiful speak for itself; letting the Church be what it is. (Not the "beautiful" as in just aesthetically pleasing, but beautiful in her mission, in the Spirit that moves within her, in the brokenness that she seeks to meet face to face. i.e. in being Christ, and the "pilgrim church on earth."
The Pope's response to the strife in Syria can be applied to all this as well, in paraphrasing his words that, "conflict begets conflict...war begets war." If the Church fights and is hostile against these three prime moral issues, (contraception, abortion, and gay marriage,) is anything likely to change? No!
The Pope is simply drawing to all of our attention (at least those who are paying attention) to the beauty of the Church, and an encounter with the Christ. Christ welcomed the sinner, told us not to judge, and cared for the poor (liberation theology). We must caution ourselves to not be so judgmental of others, and have more faith in a God who knows how to clean things up far better than all of us combined! This is, if anything, what Pope Francis is embodying!
Who is likely to be drawn in to a place, a community, that is portrayed as the "No" authority? I wouldn't, even if I knew deep down those "no's" were for my own good. I would want to know why I couldn't or shouldn't do something. I would want to know why with my heart! I think most people feel the same way. Pope Francis, by focusing on the preferential option for the poor, is allowing the Church to be more appealing to more people. What's more attractive to the heart? a) You're a bad person if you act in ways that are considered immoral..or b) Hey, right now let's help out the poor!
As many people, including myself, view the Church, she is a living, breathing being: the Mystical Body of Christ. We are members of the Church, we are each members of Christ's Mystical Body, with all of our different functions, personalities, characteristics, talents, and sins. I think Pope Francis, along with many, know the inherent power the Church has to affect change. Not that this power is man-made, or because of man, but because the Holy Spirit breathes through the Church and is her life-blood. How else could she have survived all the scandals, dishonesty, and sin that stained her throughout her approximately 2,000 years of existence? This isn't your Grandma's bible study we're dealing with!
So, as more and more people are drawn to the Church because of its genuine compassion for the poor, hearts will slowly but surely be more awakened to why the church says "no" to some things, because she is saying "yes" to something better, something beyond this life. God knows that sin hurts us, far more than we do.
Pope Francis is letting the beautiful speak for itself; letting the Church be what it is. (Not the "beautiful" as in just aesthetically pleasing, but beautiful in her mission, in the Spirit that moves within her, in the brokenness that she seeks to meet face to face. i.e. in being Christ, and the "pilgrim church on earth."
The Pope's response to the strife in Syria can be applied to all this as well, in paraphrasing his words that, "conflict begets conflict...war begets war." If the Church fights and is hostile against these three prime moral issues, (contraception, abortion, and gay marriage,) is anything likely to change? No!
The Pope is simply drawing to all of our attention (at least those who are paying attention) to the beauty of the Church, and an encounter with the Christ. Christ welcomed the sinner, told us not to judge, and cared for the poor (liberation theology). We must caution ourselves to not be so judgmental of others, and have more faith in a God who knows how to clean things up far better than all of us combined! This is, if anything, what Pope Francis is embodying!
Go out and embody this spirit, too! There are poor in your midst that only you can reach and love, because of the special way God has created you to be! In turn you will evangelize with and through our Catholic Church, and the Spirit that abounds in all things living!
Peace Out,
Kristina