En el primer aniversario del nacimiento al cielo de nuestro querido #PapaFrancisco, sus palabras y sus gestos permanecen grabados en nuestros corazones. Recojamos su legado proclamando siempre la alegría del Evangelio, anunciando la misericordia de Dios y promoviendo la fraternidad entre todos los hombres y mujeres del mundo.
Pope Francis died a year ago today. I would like to share one memory, which I think reveals something of what made him such a holy man.
In May of 2024, after it was reported that Pope had made some negative remarks about gay priests and used an Italian slur (“frociaggine”) in a meeting with Italian bishops, there was a firestorm of reaction. Even I wondered: How could this be? We had had several conversations and notes back and forth about LGBTQ issues. It seemed so out of character.
A few weeks later I was scheduled to be in Rome after helping to arrange a papal audience for a group of professional comedians. The pope invited me to see him, along with two friends who served as translators. I asked a cardinal friend how I could possibly bring up something so difficult—the question of gay priests and his use of language. My friend said, “Just say, ‘Holy Father, these things have been much in the news. What thoughts do you have?’”
The very first thing Francis said, as if he had been waiting to say it, was that he knew many holy, faithful and celibate gay priests and seminarians. When I suggested that it might help to say so publicly, he said, “Oh, but I think I have. And in any event, you can say that!” I wanted to make sure I understood him, so said, “So you’re saying I can say that you know many holy, faithful and celibate gay priests and seminarians?” He shrugged his shoulders and said, “Of course. Because I do!” My friends also told him that he shouldn’t have used that slur. He nodded sadly, and said, “Yes, yes, you’re right.”
For the next hour or so, we discussed the word he used, before moving on to other more general topics: the U.S. church, the political scene, and so on. It was a relaxed and friendly conversation, but initially about a tough topic.
A few days later, I saw him at the comedians’ audience, when he gave a beautiful reflection on humor in the Sala Clementina. When everyone lined up to shake his hand, I lingered in the back, since I had just seen him. But then several Vatican officials said, “Father, go ahead!”
When I reached his chair, he laughed and said, “Ah, so now you’re a famous American comedian!” I laughed and started to move away, knowing he was probably busy and tired. But he pulled me back insistently.
Then the pope said, “Thank you for our meeting the other day. It was helpful for me. I really needed to hear that.” He smiled and then gave me a thumbs up. (Amazingly, a friend sent me video of this very interchange, linked here, where you can see what’s happening.)
I thought: Who does this? Who thanks someone for a difficult meeting? Who thanks someone for being challenged? The answer: a person who is open to the Holy Spirit. A person who is not afraid to listen. A person who is truly humble. Something like that doesn’t make you a holy person or a saint on its own, but it’s an important part of holiness. May this holy man rest in peace.
Yes, he really said that.
Yesterday Vice President JD Vance criticized Pope Leo XIV for not knowing enough theology: "I think it's very, very important for the pope to be careful when he talks about matters of theology ... If you’re going to opine on matters of theology, you’ve got to be careful, you’ve got to make sure it’s anchored in the truth," he said, at a Turning Point conference.
One of the many, many, ironies about that statement is that it came in response to Pope Leo's comments about war and peace and, specifically, the concept of "just war," which originated with St. Augustine. As many have already noted, when the Vice President was making his comments, Pope Leo XIV, a member of the Augustinian Order, and twice Prior General of the Augustinians before his election as Pope, was visiting the hometown of St. Augustine, then called "Hippo," now in Annaba, a town in modern-day Algeria. For good measure, Pope Leo XIV, the man critiqued for insufficient theological education, earned not only a master's degree in divinity, but also licentiate and a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome.
JD Vance's recent conversion to Catholicism is beside the point, because many converts are of course not only highly intelligent (and learned in theology) but faithful and energetic Catholics. We rejoice over everyone entering the church.
What most of us do not rejoice over, however, is a deadly combination of inaccuracy and hubris. Pace, Vice President Vance, but the current war in Iran is not a just war under Catholic doctrine. You can hear that from church leaders from across the theological spectrum, from Archbishop Timothy Broglio, the head of the military vicariate and former head of the @USCCB, to Cardinal Robert McElroy, Archbishop of Washington who holds doctorates in both theology and political science. You can look all that up online. Suffice to say, the Vice President doesn't seem to understand the tenets of just war.
Nor does he seem to understand the fundamental position of the church, which is for peace. "War is always a defeat for humanity," as St. John Paul II said. If that authority isn't enough, then turn to Jesus who said, "Blessed are the peacemakers," not "Blessed are the warmongers." And after the Resurrection, the Risen Christ says to the frightened disciples not "Vengeance is mine" but "Peace be with you."
Incidentally, the day before, the Vice President said that the Pope (and the Vatican) should stick to teaching about morality, also seeming to forget that war and peace are profoundly moral issues.
For his part, Pope Leo was focused yesterday on his spiritual father, St. Augustine. After what seemed like an emotional visit to Hippo, he celebrated Mass at the Basilica of St. Augustine in Annaba. During his homily he said, "The primary task of pastors as ministers of the Gospel is therefore to bear witness to God before the world with one heart and one soul, not permitting our concerns to lead us astray through fear, nor trends to undermine us through compromise."
Amen. Let's all continue to pray for the Holy Father as he works for peace.
(Image: Pope Leo XIV prays at the archeological ruins of Hippo, home of St. Augustine, in current-day Algeria. CNS photo).
@JasonMiller@Reuters Tu sabe onde tá o Brasil no mapa?? Cala a boca, vá tomar no cu, e vai cuidar do bronzeamento artificial ridículo do teu ex-chefe!!!
Tendo em vista a manifestação pública do presidente norte-americano Donald Trump apresentada em uma rede social, na tarde desta-quarta (9), é importante ressaltar:
O Brasil é um país soberano com instituições independentes que não aceitará ser tutelado por ninguém.
O processo judicial contra aqueles que planejaram o golpe de estado é de competência apenas da Justiça Brasileira e, portanto, não está sujeito a nenhum tipo de ingerência ou ameaça que fira a independência das instituições nacionais.
No contexto das plataformas digitais, a sociedade brasileira rejeita conteúdos de ódio, racismo, pornografia infantil, golpes, fraudes, discursos contra os direitos humanos e a liberdade democrática.
No Brasil, liberdade de expressão não se confunde com agressão ou práticas violentas. Para operar em nosso país, todas as empresas nacionais e estrangeiras estão submetidas à legislação brasileira.
É falsa a informação, no caso da relação comercial entre Brasil e Estados Unidos, sobre o alegado déficit norte-americano. As estatísticas do próprio governo dos Estados Unidos comprovam um superávit desse país no comércio de bens e serviços com o Brasil da ordem de 410 bilhões de dólares ao longo dos últimos 15 anos.
Neste sentido, qualquer medida de elevação de tarifas de forma unilateral será respondida à luz da Lei brasileira de Reciprocidade Econômica.
A soberania, o respeito e a defesa intransigente dos interesses do povo brasileiro são os valores que orientam a nossa relação com o mundo.