Pope Francis gives personal interview to Jesuit magazines
(Vatican Radio) In a lengthy personal interview, published in Jesuit magazines around
the world on Thursday, Pope Francis talks frankly about himself, his Jesuit background
and his vision for a more open, inclusive and welcoming Church. The publication
is the result of three private meetings that the Pope held with the head of the Italian
Jesuit magazine La Civiltà Cattolica, Fr Antonio Spadaro, in August at the Santa Martha
guesthouse in the Vatican.
Philippa Hitchen takes a closer look.....
Listen:
In the first
part of the interview, the Pope shares personal insights and difficult moments from
his past, including a fear of being seen as ‘ultraconservative’ on account of his
‘authoritarian way’ of making quick decisions. Recalling problems he encountered as
a Church leader in Argentina, the Pope speaks of lessons learnt, especially the importance
of consultation and a more effective form of Synodal governance. This, he says, will
also bring a breath of fresh air to the ecumenical movement. Pope Francis also
discusses the importance of his Jesuit training for the challenges he faces today,
especially the process of discernment and the belief that grand principles must always
be ‘incarnated’ in specific times, places and people. Speaking of his favourite
image of the Church, the Pope chooses the expression found in the Vatican II document
Lumen Gentium, ‘Sentire cum Ecclesia’ or ‘feeling with the Church’ – not just the
hierarchy, he stresses, but the whole people of God. Asked what the Church needs
most at the moment, Pope Francis focuses on the importance of healing wounds, warming
hearts and sharing the dark nights of pain that people suffer. The first reform we
need, he says, is that of attitudes, to learn how to become ministers of mercy. Even
regarding the complex moral questions of homosexuality and remarriage for divorcees,
the Pope says it’s vital to find a new balance between pastoral attention to the individual
and the transmission of the moral teachings of the Church. Finally the Pope returns
to one of his favourite ideas – that of a constant journey towards a God of surprises.
Rather than closing ourselves in to a paralysing past, we must walk with trust, confidence
and courage to find new spaces of encounter with God.
The full text of
the interview with Pope Francis can be found in the U.S. publication American Magazine
(www.americamagazine.org) and in the UK based online journal Thnking Faith (www.thinkingfaith.org)