Roman Catholic leader named Time Magazine’s person of the year
If you hadn’t already heard, Pope Francis has been named “TIME Person of the Year,” beating Edward Snowden, the man who first leaked questionable practices of the NSA. Pope Francis, who succeeded the retiring Pope Benedict, has been well received by the Malvern community – and the rest of the world. With a humble backstory and a goal of revising the image of the modern Church, it’s not difficult to see why.
Devout members of our community have already said much about him. Teachers like Mr. Boyce have praised him bringing a “new dynamic” to the modern church. Father Thom found his “genteel” demeanor commendable. Fr. Flynn himself noted how Francis seems more “visible and transparent” than previous popes. As 2013 ends, Pope Francis hasn’t strayed far from these first impressions.
He’s managed to accomplish a lot so far, too. In October, he explained that he hoped to direct today’s Catholics away from the heavily politicized issues of abortion and same-sex marriage. Some major media outlets misinterpreted it as his OK on both, which deviates from Catholic doctrine.
Soon after that, Pope Francis was once again dominating the headlines, embracing a disfigured man, who “quivered… [and] felt great warmth” afterwards. Recently, he was seen sneaking out of the Vatican palace late in the night to care for the homeless. There seems to be no end to his charity.
Interestingly, TIME magazine isn’t the only magazine to award this annual title. The Advocate, a U.S. based LGBT-themed magazine, has honored Pope Francis for his “stark change in rhetoric from his predecessors.” One Pope Francis quote the editors of the magazine adored was, “If someone is gay and seeks the Lord with good will, who am I to judge?” The Advocate’s editors also cited this Pope Francis quote, from an interview in America magazine: “A person once asked me, in a provocative manner, if I approved of homosexuality. I replied with another question: ‘Tell me: when God looks at a gay person, does he endorse the existence of this person with love, or reject and condemn this person?’ We must always consider the person.”
Pope Francis has become famed to many now, and it isn’t hard to see way. He has appealed both sides of the spectrum with his words and actions. He lived a humble life before his papacy, and it seems he will continue that lifestyle in it. The Catholic Church’s new Pope wants to bring more of all diverities of people to Christ. We can already tell he’s off to a great start.
