May 24 Sat
Will the Pope solve all the problems?
Christ established the papacy as the Church’s firm foundation, a rock, to proclaim His saving doctrine. The Pope’s first and fundamental responsibility is to preserve and hand on the deposit of Faith. He doesn’t need to be a great orator, or theologian, or administrator, or diplomat – however beneficial those gifts might be. He does need to confirm us in the faith.
Looking back on the past twelve years, it becomes clear that every pontificate was not a day longer or shorter than God willed it to be. So, while sober and respectful analysis of any pope was warranted, complaining in a self-centered way about “how sick I am of this Pope” was a rebellion against God’s will, against His permissive will to allow evils in the Church, and His perfect will for us to glorify Him by suffering them well. There is a difference between recognizing human injustice objectively, and whining and raging as though we can stand righteously before God and tell him, “Your chastisements are unjust.”
In the Church’s trials, our focus should be on the suffering of Christ rather than our inordinate self-love. One who suffers with Christ is not impatient.
Even Pope Paul VI did not hide his pain and anguish: ‘Given the situation in the Church today, we have the impression that through some cracks in the wall the smoke of Satan has entered the temple of God: There is doubt, uncertainty, questioning, dissatisfaction, confrontation. There is no confidence in the Church. Instead, people put their trust in the first who comes along to talk to us about a newspaper editorial or a social movement, and they run after him to ask him whether he has the formula for true life, ignoring the fact that we already have it, that we are the owners of that formula.’
We should pray and fast for the present Pope Leo XIV out of love for the Church, but we should not expect the Pope to “save” us, so that we will not have to fight for it, or convert personally. The Church is as holy as her members. Likewise, we should not complacently put our hope in a reaction against the sins of previous generations. Every generation has its problems. Only a worldly man trusts in a pendulum.
If the attitude of some during the previous pontificate was one of complaint against God’s will or distrust in Providence, let us resolve to start fresh with the present Pope. We must be part of the solution rather than the problem. That does not mean merely speaking against the errors we hate, but living a Christian life, offering mortifications, and committing to a heroic prayer life.
Conclusion: Even if the present Pope is a saint, he cannot sanctify the Church alone.
Do not be afraid to accept your responsibilities: the Church needs you; she needs your commitment and generosity; the Pope needs you, and, at the beginning of this new period, he is asking you to live the Gospel on the paths of the world.
Illustration: Ancient ivory carving with Christ between St Peter and St Paul.
Some excerpts from Thomas V. Mirus