Pope Francis

[Robbi]

My husband and I have been wanting to go to Rome for a while. Pope Francis election has made me more eager. I think I might plan a trip and give it to him as a Christmas present.

 

[Aliceacc]

People are posting as if Francis is the first pope in modern history to walk among the people, and he is not. The shooting of JPII caused a major shift in papal protection.

That's not at all the message I meant to imply.

Each holder of the office brings something to it. Since most of us were unfamiliar with Pope Francis until a week ago, we're glad that it's so easy to see what the College of Cardinals saw in him.

 

[Domo]

Generally I am very impressed with the man. If only he had kept his distance from the Falklands issue. The people were polled and they wanted to remain British. Get over it.

 

[castleview]

Generally I am very impressed with the man. If only he had kept his distance from the Falklands issue. The people were polled and they wanted to remain British. Get over it.

My opinion really doesn't matter, but …if one good thing came out of that, it brought about the end of the military dictatorship. The tyranny under that regime I do believe is something Francis has to answer more for and most important - lead the way to find out what happened to each of the victims and find the stolen babies. The church did not behave in a favorable way during the Dirty War, so I hope he uses his position and influence to bring closure and justice to the many who don't have it.

 

[MrsPete]

I'm not Catholic, so maybe I'm not fully entitled to an opinion . . . but I really have a good impression of this guy. Things I heard on the news that I liked:

- When he was ArchBishop (?) he chose to live in a small apartment rather than in the ArchBishop's palace.
- He cooked his own meals.
- He gave up the chauffered limo and rode the bus.

He seems to be a person who recognizes that leaders (whether they be church leaders or other types) are supposed to serve the people, to improve the world -- not to grab as much as they can for themselves.

I'd love to see some of our American politicians do the same: Let Congress give up some of their cushy perks, Let the president skip the expensive Inauguration ceremony and Ball.

 

[PollyannaMom]

I'm not Catholic, so maybe I'm not fully entitled to an opinion . . . but I really have a good impression of this guy. Things I heard on the news that I liked:

- When he was ArchBishop (?) he chose to live in a small apartment rather than in the ArchBishop's palace.
- He cooked his own meals.
- He gave up the chauffered limo and rode the bus.

He seems to be a person who recognizes that leaders (whether they be church leaders or other types) are supposed to serve the people, to improve the world -- not to grab as much as they can for themselves.

I'd love to see some of our American politicians do the same: Let Congress give up some of their cushy perks, Let the president skip the expensive Inauguration ceremony and Ball.

Of course you are! And I agree. I like him for the same reasons.

 

[declansdad]

This makes me want to get to the Vatican even more now.

He is going to be a Pope for the people.

He is so down to earth.

My question is will he be the pope for gay catholic couples?

 

[castleview]

I'm not Catholic, so maybe I'm not fully entitled to an opinion . . . but I really have a good impression of this guy. Things I heard on the news that I liked:

- When he was ArchBishop (?) he chose to live in a small apartment rather than in the ArchBishop's palace.
- He cooked his own meals.
- He gave up the chauffered limo and rode the bus.

He seems to be a person who recognizes that leaders (whether they be church leaders or other types) are supposed to serve the people, to improve the world -- not to grab as much as they can for themselves.

I'd love to see some of our American politicians do the same: Let Congress give up some of their cushy perks, Let the president skip the expensive Inauguration ceremony and Ball.

Here, here! I'm curious when the last time any of them paid for their own meal was.

 

[NikitaZee]

My question is will he be the pope for gay catholic couples?

If they are Catholic he is their pope.

ETA .. I know what you mean, just not going to go there. I like this pope already ... and I'll continue to like him if he stands strictly by the teachings of the Catholic Church ... I don't know why anybody would expect differently from him.

 

[Nancyg56]

My question is will he be the pope for gay catholic couples?

I hope so.

 

[Marlea98]

I hope he does do well as a pope. I'm not Catholic, but I wish him well anyway. A strong pope can have influence far beyond just those in the Catholic faith.

I think that may very well have been the rationale behind his selection. The numbers of Catholics around the world has been in decline and combined with the child abuse cover ups, I think there has had to have been a shift in focus.

I'm pleased with this choice of Pope and I have high hopes for him. We Australians seem to like him for his laid-back approach so far and we're secretly hoping he'll let out a 'mate' or 'crikey' every now and then in his conversations

 

[Marlea98]

I'm not Catholic, so maybe I'm not fully entitled to an opinion . . . but I really have a good impression of this guy. Things I heard on the news that I liked:

- When he was ArchBishop (?) he chose to live in a small apartment rather than in the ArchBishop's palace.
- He cooked his own meals.
- He gave up the chauffered limo and rode the bus.

He seems to be a person who recognizes that leaders (whether they be church leaders or other types) are supposed to serve the people, to improve the world -- not to grab as much as they can for themselves.

I'd love to see some of our American politicians do the same: Let Congress give up some of their cushy perks, Let the president skip the expensive Inauguration ceremony and Ball.

Exactly!

 

[momto3gr8boys]

My question is will he be the pope for gay catholic couples?

Most likely not in terms of full acceptance, but this article shows that he's probably the closest we will get for some time.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/20/w...s-recall-pragmatic-streak.html?pagewanted=all

And as for his public comments, well I am willing to give him the benefit of the doubt for the moment. Under B16 he didn't have much choice to do what the boss told him to, so to speak. In this one are I'm reserving judgement until I see more.

Aside from this issue, I do think he's a good choice.

 

[declansdad]

Most likely not in terms of full acceptance, but this article shows that he's probably the closest we will get for some time.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/20/w...s-recall-pragmatic-streak.html?pagewanted=all

And as for his public comments, well I am willing to give him the benefit of the doubt for the moment. Under B16 he didn't have much choice to do what the boss told him to, so to speak. In this one are I'm reserving judgement until I see more.

Aside from this issue, I do think he's a good choice.

That article does give some encouragement on the issue. Now that he is the pope, hopefully he can lead them out of the dark ages on this issue. Only time will tell.