Viva il Papa

Wednesday January 21, 2015

By Deacon Adam Laski

Why would you want to spend your morning with an old man in white?  Pope Francis has become the center of lots of media attention for the way that he captivates crowds and meets people with the heart of a pastor.  This morning the deacons had a chance to attend a Wednesday audience with the Pope.  The energy in the audience hall was building as many pilgrims from all around the world gathered to greet the pope, hear his words,and receive his blessing.  It strikes me now that I have a moment to reflect, that Pope Francis is not simply a charismatic personality but he represents the words of Christ to peter, “you are Peter and upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.”

This is not simply a triumphalisitic conclusion on the part of Christ.  Looking for the kingdom of God?  “Come join the perfectly constructed Church.” Instead this is the foundation of a Church which is all at the same time the mystical body of Christ and being perfected in all of her members. 

This is why audiences at the Vatican can be beautiful and crazy.! 

Beautiful because there is an image of the Church throughout the world in each of the groups of pilgrims and their unique languages.   There are Catholics from all different walks, backgrounds, and cultures who come to encounter the holy father, expressing an act of faith in Christ which is the faith of the Church.  People see in the pope a sign of the mystical body of Christ present in each of the local churches throughout the world. This isn’t because he is a “super-sacrament” but rather the father of our big family.  

 Crazy because many of those people want the same things: an amazing selfie with the pope, a great spot to shake his hand when he passes by, to make a phone call to tell their mom they’re about to meet the pope in person.

But, joking aside, they are there because they see the pope because the pope is, a father in the true sense of the term, one providing a mission for the family, a compassionate facing the needs of the church throughout the world, and doing his best to meet them with the compassion of Christ, while at the same time witnessing to, as he has reminded us, the joy of the Gospel.

So when we had a chance to line up and wait for the pope to pass by, hear him speak, and pray for a brief moment with him, it is to renew us in our identity as sons of the Church that Christ has established.  To express our desire to remain faithful to the reality that we are part of Christ’s body spread throughout the world.