Habemus Papam: The Roman Catholic Church has a new Pope.
“A religious leader can be strong, and very firm, but without being aggressive,” Pope Francis states in his latest book “On Heaven and Earth.” “Whoever leads should be like those who serve. When he stops serving he becomes a mere manager, a representative of an NGO.”
Francis now represents 1.2 billion Roman Catholics across the globe, with massive power through his representational decisions and statements made in the past.
He offers a profound social conscience on many issues attacking the modern church.
Alex Freyre, Executive Director of the Buenos Aires AIDS Foundation, tweeted, “Maybe the fact that the Vatican has chosen a pope from a country where gay marriage is allowed is a sign that they get it?”
A famous picture circulating is of Francis kissing the feet of AIDS victims. But I wouldn’t mistake kindness for weakness like Freyre did.
As cardinal in Argentina, Francis took a bold stand against homosexual marriage and free contraception in his home state.
“The identity, and the survival of the family: father, mother, and children,” was in question in spite of some reformists within the church and their wishes to see same-sex marriage and adoption condoned by the Catholic Church, he argued.
So how is he a progressive?
He provides advancement and non-conformist ideas in his methods and decision-making. You can be a progressive without being liberal, despite some modern dictionaries’ inclusion of liberals into their definition.
Francis’ handling of pedophilia in the priesthood is a good indicator.
“If a priest is a pedophile, he is so before he becomes a priest. But when this happens you must never look away. You cannot be in a position of power and use it to destroy the life of another person,” Francis wrote. Regarding simply moving the priest to another parish, “that is stupid, because the priest continues to carry the problem in his backpack,” Francis argued.
It’s too easy. If a priest is pedophile, you sack him and try him, and do not cover it up.
The pope’s own past is not without blemish, however.
In Argentina, there have been accusations of his involvement and allowance of arrests regarding fellow priests by the government.
These are accusations he wishes to resolve and dispel by meeting with officials like President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner on Monday.
Francis’ more traditional policies on issues such as abortion are unlikely to change, as he has called pro-choice advocates propagators of a “culture of death.” Some may be surprised to find his stance on contraception to be out of alignment with the Catholic Church in the past. Taking a pragmatic approach to the prevention of spreading disease, condoms for example, should be allowed among married couples, he said
The new pope also recognizes globalization and its influence. In his book, he claims globalization has a near imperialistic agenda when it tries to make everything uniform and threatens culture. His experience with the corruption of Argentina’s government probably plays a role into his perception of global and state policy.
“Human rights are not only violated by terrorism, repression or assassination, but also by unfair economic structures that creates huge inequalities,” Francis wrote.
His admiration of some socialist-atheists who helped bring social justice to Argentina is also noteworthy because of his belief in interfaith dialogue.
Overall, Pope Francis shows humility and grace when appropriate, harsh words for those who need it and perspective on a global scene.
Landon Mills is a 21-year-old international studies senior from Sunshine, La.
