I pray today for Pope Francis. He is a gift to the world, not only to our Church. He speaks from his heart and he has the ability to take the gospel and help us understand what it means to live it and not merely talk about it. He calls us to be "messy," to "get our hands dirty" while following Christ. He tells us to challenge our pastors, to help us live what Christ has invited us to live, as disciples. He has touched upon the heart of the faith of Catholics throughout the world in every statement he has made. He is truly our pastor.
But, Pope Francis has not changed the teachings of the Church. He can't and for this he is being criticized and attacked in the secular press, as if the Church receives it's mission from them. They don't get it. And while they don't get it, they ridicule and print untruths. How fickle! How childish! How ignorant!
One example: they complain about the Church's "mishandling" of the sexual abuse crisis, although no other organization in the world has done as much as the Church to get on top of this horrible sin. Still, when the Pope creates a commission to do more in this regard the headlines read "It's About Time that the Catholic Church . . ." Ah, are you kidding me? Or think about the dialogue that was taking place in various media outlets, concerning the holiness of John Paul II and John XXIII and whether or not they should have be canonized as Saints by the Catholic Church? Really?
Hey, a sense of humor, a sense of perspective and a sense of history helps. How can we expect to be treated better than Jesus was? "There you go again .________" could be a humorous comeback. Logical, thinking Catholics know the graces that we are receiving during this historic time are genuine gifts. They are not swayed by the changing wind or "rise and fall" of news columns which often build up to tear down, rarely to build up again.
Not to worry. Those who delight in tearing down our Pope or our Church by misrepresenting the truth, don't influence the millions of people who think, gather accurate information and research sources completely. Go figure.
N.B. This blog excerpt is not a generalization of all journalists who write with honor and integrity, but an opinion expressed in reaction to the few, but influential journalists who insult and undermine the Catholic Church teaching, whenever they have the opportunity.
But, Pope Francis has not changed the teachings of the Church. He can't and for this he is being criticized and attacked in the secular press, as if the Church receives it's mission from them. They don't get it. And while they don't get it, they ridicule and print untruths. How fickle! How childish! How ignorant!
One example: they complain about the Church's "mishandling" of the sexual abuse crisis, although no other organization in the world has done as much as the Church to get on top of this horrible sin. Still, when the Pope creates a commission to do more in this regard the headlines read "It's About Time that the Catholic Church . . ." Ah, are you kidding me? Or think about the dialogue that was taking place in various media outlets, concerning the holiness of John Paul II and John XXIII and whether or not they should have be canonized as Saints by the Catholic Church? Really?
Hey, a sense of humor, a sense of perspective and a sense of history helps. How can we expect to be treated better than Jesus was? "There you go again .________" could be a humorous comeback. Logical, thinking Catholics know the graces that we are receiving during this historic time are genuine gifts. They are not swayed by the changing wind or "rise and fall" of news columns which often build up to tear down, rarely to build up again.
Not to worry. Those who delight in tearing down our Pope or our Church by misrepresenting the truth, don't influence the millions of people who think, gather accurate information and research sources completely. Go figure.
N.B. This blog excerpt is not a generalization of all journalists who write with honor and integrity, but an opinion expressed in reaction to the few, but influential journalists who insult and undermine the Catholic Church teaching, whenever they have the opportunity.
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