We Have a New Pope: Francis the First

"It looked like my brother Cardinals went to the end of the world to find me," quipped the newly elected Pope. He is from Argentina, the son of Italian immigrants.

POPE FRANCIS I.
Image from catholic.org

Jorge Mario Cardinal Bergoglio, is a Jesuit - making him the first Jesuit to become Pope too - but he took the name of the founder of another religious Order, Francis Bernardone, our St Francis of Assisi. This is the first time the name Francis is used by a Pope. The last one to use a papal name which has never been previously used was Pope Lando [913 - 914]. It was his real name. The first Pope to use a name that is not his real name was Pope John II [533 - 535]. The first Pope to use a double name was Pope John Paul I [1978, 33 days only as Pope], predecessor of Pope John Paul II, taking the names of his two recent predecessors, Pope John XXIII [1958 - 1963] and Pope Paul VI [1963 - 1978].

The reaction of the faithful is understandable, they were joyful that the Church already has a new leader to steer the institution which the Lord Jesus Christ has established on earth. The Lord has a new Vicar to represent Him in the world. For those who do not understand the workings of the Spirit, of course there are questions, there are doubts. But the important thing is that once again, it was not humanity who chose but the Holy Spirit!

As we discussed in earlier entry, there are many and varied expectations and hopes coming from many and various groups. As if the new Pope was to be elected in the manner of secular leaders, different groups voicing different ideologies and inclinations spoke of their hopes and expectations. There are those who hoped that the new Pope would be less like Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI, that is, that he would be more liberal and tolerant of the modern world especially with regards to abortion, contraceptives and same-sex marriages. There are those who hope for changes that may not be too radical but far from the traditional practice of the Church such as married priests. But of course, the Church remained hopeful that whoever becomes Pope would never steer the Church away from the Lord's teachings. 

Pope Francis I is the first non-European Pope since the 8th century, hence the first non-European Pope of the Modern Era and the first Latin American to become Pope. He is even the first from the Western Hemisphere and also the first from a Third World country since the world have been broken down to ordinally numbered countries. Hence there is some truth to what he said that his brother Cardinals went to the end of the world to find him. Perhaps the Lord spoke to the Cardinals during the Conclave that they should go to the ends of the world just as He did to the Apostles. But this time, it was not directed to preaching the Gospel and to making disciples of all nations but to look for someone who would lead the Church in fulfilling such mission - backwards. 

For as we know, Europe, after having been the bastion of the Faith for so many centuries, the bearer of the Gospel to the ends of the world through the colonization of the non-Christian parts of the world in the Middle Ages, have fallen into various ideologies that threaten the Faith and the Church. Now, someone from the lands that Europe colonized and Christianized occupies the Chair of St Peter in order to lead the Lord's Church, perhaps for the remainder of the first quarter of this century and toward the start of the next quarter. Hopefully he could also lead Europe toward a revitalization of their faith.

The new Pope is known for his humility that people say he even "rides the bus". His choice of the name of Francis reflects that attitude. he also manifested such humility when before he gave the Urbi et Orbi Apostolic Blessing: he bowed down to the people gathered at the square after asking them to pray for him! More than that, it was St Francis who heard the Lord's voice in the beginnings of the Second Millennium to "repair my Church which is falling into ruins". Pope Francis I this time surely has a lot of repairing to do. As one article speaks of, the new Pope would be a carpenter much like its Founder.

Interestingly, the last Pope to come from outside of Europe was a Syrian, Gregory III, elected in 741. Syria is already a Muslim country and currently war-torn hence in so much need of being repaired too.

Perhaps the Holy Spirit took the weigh of the 42% Catholics living in the Latin American continent which are also facing challenges from Fundamentalist incursions. Then perhaps the Holy Spirit just followed the journey of the Faith. It started in the Middle East, part of Asia, and flourished in North Africa and Europe before it crossed the great Atlantic Ocean to the New World which became the platform for the evangelization of the eastern part of Asia. Probably, after Pope Francis I, eastern Asia will contribute its own Pope and the Spirit's journey would have made a circumnavigation of the world.

"Habemus Papam!" We have a Pope! The world held its breath for a while and will still surely hold it until it is clear as to whose expectations would be fulfilled by Pope Francis I.