Habemus Papam!

 I never would have guessed it, much less thought that I'd see an American-born Pope!  I had heard Prevost's name bandied about even before Pope Francis' death, so I'm not too stunned, Gentle Reader, but I am surprised.

 Already the Americanist "patriots" are whooping that one of their fellow nationals now sits the Throne of St. Peter.  I think they'll be quite disappointed as his pontificate unfolds.  Although born in Chicago, Pope Leo has spent most of his adult life outside of the United States, with his missionary work in Peru, then curial work in Rome.  Even before, with his parents' backgrounds in France, Italy, and Latin America, Pope Leo already would have had a wider view of things that most Americans lack.

 I've already heard from one who is a fervent MAGA devotee say that it is hoped that Pope Leo will be "neutral".  There has never been any such thing as a neutral Pope.  Even the most corrupt of Popes was not neutral, either spiritually or politically.  Such statements betray the fact that those who hold them prefer first to worship at the altar of Caesar, and then perhaps at the altar of God.  A neutral Pope is a neutered Pope.  This Pope has chosen the name Leo - "lion" in Latin.  I don't think that we will find him being a neutered lap cat for Trump or any other national leader.  We will see him be a lion to be reckoned with; a lion who will protect those who need protection; a lion to roar out the needs of those in need; a lion to put to flight the phantasms of error.

 Pope Leo, being a religious of the Augustinian friars, has taken the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, as did our late Pope Francis as a Jesuit.   Like Pope Francis, Pope Leo has laboured in the Lord's vineyard of Latin America, as a priest and bishop.  I think that these experiences will deeply influence how Pope Leo leads the Church, and I think it will be similar to the way of Pope Francis.

There will be differences, of course, not in substance, but in style.  Since Pope Leo is a canonist, I think he will be much more precise in what he says and writes, than was Pope Francis.   Already, Pope Leo in his first appearance has worn the crimson mozetta, which Pope Francis eschewed.  We'll have to wait and see if he chooses to live in the Casa Santa Marta or the Apostolic Palace, as well as wearing the oxblood slippers rather than his old black shoes.  Whatever those choices, those are only changes in style.

I have great hopes that Pope Leo XIV will be a great pontiff. I'm sure he will live up to his chosen name of Leo, the lion.  

Let us pray for Leo, our Pope.  May the Lord preserve him, and give him life, and make him blessed upon the earth, and deliver him not up to the will of his enemies.

God bless!

Father P

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

 6 May 2025 The Kind of Pope I Want Since the death of our late Holy Father, Pope Francis, and even before, there’s been much speculation on who will be the next Roman Pontiff.  Some of it is blatantly partisan, some of it just downright ridiculous.  Many in the West are treating it as if it were an ecclesiastical version of the secular political campaigning of presidential candidates.  Various sectors within the Church are pushing for their pet ideologies - more freedom for the traditional Latin Mass; more emphasis on the rights of the family; more action against the abuse of the vulnerable, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.  Certainly these issues have importance.  However, I think that we of the West tend to ignore the issues facing the Church in the Southern Hemisphere, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, where the Church is growing by leaps and bounds.  Nor can we forget that in some areas the Church is being persecuted, not just in subtle ways, but i...
Read more
Image
 Requiescat in Pace! I awoke today, Easter Monday, to very sad news.  Like all Catholic priests, I had gone through the marathon of Holy Week, with all of the various liturgies, which are spiritually and emotionally moving, but also physically exhausting.  Easter Sunday night, after the parish masses, I relaxed, watching the classic Cecil B. DeMille film "Ben Hur", then settled in for a good night's sleep. After waking Monday morning, I dressed and prayed, fed my cats, and made my morning coffee, then turned on the television only to be met with the news that Pope Francis had died. I was stunned, yet I could see it coming.  I had watched the recorded Easter Sunday Mass from the Vatican, and the Urbi et Orbi blessing following the Vatican Mass on Sunday, once I had celebrated Easter Masses at my two parishes.  I was struck by how tired Pope Francis looked when he came out to be driven through the crowd in St. Peter's Square, and when he gave the Po...
Read more