"Francis,
Francis, go and repair My house which, as you can see, is falling into
ruins". Icon of Christ Crucified speaking to Francis of Assisi
Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio,76 born December 17, 1936 in Buenos Aires Argentina, was elected pope on March 13, 2013. Taking the name Francis I (after St. Francis of Assisi), he is the first pope from
the Americas. The archbishop of Buenos
Aires is seen by some as an austere Jesuit intellectual who
modernized Argentina’s conservative Catholic Church and became the first Jesuit to become pope. While the Jesuits have had
their share of disagreements with the Vatican in the past, especially during pontificates
of John Paul II and Benedict XVI, the lack of a previous Jesuit pope might may have
more to do with the background of their order.
Jesuit priests at the time of their solemn and final
profession in the Society of Jesus promise: I will never strive or ambition,
not even indirectly, to be chosen or promoted to any prelacy or dignity in or
outside the Society; and I will do my best never to consent to my election
unless I am forced to do so by obedience to him who can order me under penalty
of sin (Constitutions S.J., Part X, N°6 [817]).
Yet, because of various reasons and in different
circumstances—for example, need of a bishop in an area where the Church has
still to be developed, recognition of a theologian's outstanding contribution
to theological reflection, etc.—several Jesuits have been made bishops or even
cardinals and now Francis I. In such cases they remain only nominally Jesuit,
as they lose active and passive voice within the Order and are no longer under
the obedience of the Superior General.
It is said that as archbishop
of Buenos Aires Jorge Bergoglio lived in a modest home, travelled by bus, cooked
his own meals and readily made himself available to the common and poor
citizens of Argentina. Bergoglio persuaded hundreds of Argentineans’
not to fly to Rome to celebrate with him but instead to give the money they
would have spent on plane tickets to the poor.
At the same time was a fierce opponent of Argentina’s decision to
legalize gay marriage * in 2010, arguing children need to have the right to be
raised and educated by a father and a mother.
He was created a cardinal by John Paul II on 21 February 2001.
Because Bergoglio as a former
Jesuit, even if it is now considered nominally so – it will be interesting to
see how his Jesuit background will help him address the mountain of problems which
he has now inherited. Without question the
very future of the Roman Catholic institution depends on it. For that reason alone something should be
said about the order of the Society of Jesus or Jesuits – particularly how this
may contrast with the dogmatic and iron rule under both JP II and
Benedict.
The order’s commitment to
social justice could be the trigger for renewed scrutiny from the Vatican. According to author David Gibson ‘The Rule of
Benedict’ (2006), The Jesuits saw themselves as responding to the [Vatican II]
council’s call for religious orders to return to their roots”. Gibson continues . . . “One of Ignatius’s
founding principles, set out in his famous Spiritual
Exercises, was for Jesuits to “choose poverty with Christ’s poor,” reflecting
what his spiritual descendants did, especially in Latin America. But, the Roman Curia had a different view and
focused on what was seen as the order’s improper involvement in politics.”
As a champion of the poor Bergoglio,
must have been surprised when JP II and Cardinal Ratzinger both finally condemned
liberation theology, in the mid eighties, as a hardcore Marxist idea. While the Jesuit order has also been
outspoken against centralization of the Church during the reign of JP II and
Benedict XVI it is too early to state with any certainty if this remains an ideal
to be followed with Francis I. Such liberating ideals were also reflected by some
former Jesuits such a Michael Walsh when he spoke out against Roman Catholic
elitist groups such as Opus Dei claiming that “the basic tenet of Christianity is that faith in Jesus Christ should be
a liberating force in people’s lives, that it should free them to become more
themselves, more in charge of their own destinies”. Should Francis I desire a return to a more
humble institution it would certainly signal a significant change from the hard
line rule introduced by his predecessors.
The conflict in theologies handled
under the direction of Pope John Paul II and Joseph Ratzinger as head of the Office
for the Doctrine of the Faith numerous notable Jesuits led many Jesuits being removed
or silenced. These included such notables as Jon Sobrino, Jacques Dupres,
Thomas Reese, Karl Rahner, Fr. John
McNeill, David Hollenbach, Anthony de Mello, Fr. Roger Haight, Fr. Paul
Valadier, Jacques Dupuis, Fr. Bill Callahan, Fr. Pedro Arrupe.
The Jesuit Society remains the
largest order in the church today with nearly twenty thousand members. It’s
very success also created problems. It
has been so influential that it often ran afoul of both secular and Vatican
authorities. Is it possible that Francis
I may be the Pope to finally challenge the Curia and with the guidance of the
Holy Spirit and head the church in a new spirit filled direction? Will he be(come) a modern chuch leader for the People of God, a Pope for the times?
Links: Fr. Richard Rohr, O.F.M. on Francis I - here
* while Francis I may have opposed legalizing gay marriage on the basis that children deserve a mother and father it should be recognized that a) the adoption of children by married gay couples became necessary because the biological parents were not able to care for them b) gay married couples are not able to reproduce .
Links: Fr. Richard Rohr, O.F.M. on Francis I - here
* while Francis I may have opposed legalizing gay marriage on the basis that children deserve a mother and father it should be recognized that a) the adoption of children by married gay couples became necessary because the biological parents were not able to care for them b) gay married couples are not able to reproduce .
