{"id":4713,"date":"2025-04-22T11:00:10","date_gmt":"2025-04-22T11:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/?p=4713"},"modified":"2025-04-22T11:39:03","modified_gmt":"2025-04-22T11:39:03","slug":"bishop-robert-barron-the-legacy-of-pope-francis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/22\/bishop-robert-barron-the-legacy-of-pope-francis\/","title":{"rendered":"BISHOP ROBERT BARRON: The legacy of Pope Francis"},"content":{"rendered":"

At\u00a0one\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0meetings\u00a0of\u00a0cardinals in advance\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0conclave\u00a0of\u00a02013, Jorge Mario Bergoglio<\/a>,\u00a0the\u00a0archbishop\u00a0of\u00a0Buenos Aires, rose to speak.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In simple but provocative language, he called for a Church that goes out<\/a>\u00a0from\u00a0itself to\u00a0the\u00a0margins, both physical\u00a0and\u00a0existential. A Church that remains focused\u00a0on\u00a0itself, preoccupied with its own disagreements\u00a0and\u00a0tensions, will be, he insisted, ineffectual.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

By all accounts, this was\u00a0the\u00a0speech that secured his election as pope just a few days later.\u00a0And\u00a0it is, furthermore,\u00a0the\u00a0speech that set\u00a0the\u00a0tone for\u00a0the\u00a0entire Francis papacy.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In\u00a0word, gesture\u00a0and\u00a0deed, Pope Francis<\/a> consistently reached out to those\u00a0on\u00a0the\u00a0edges \u2013 the\u00a0poor,\u00a0the\u00a0disenfranchised, migrants, those disaffiliated\u00a0from\u00a0the\u00a0Church \u2013 and\u00a0endeavored to bring\u00a0them to\u00a0the\u00a0center.\u00a0<\/p>\n

POPE FRANCIS WAS DISRUPTIVE. NOW, THE NEXT POPE MUST CLEAN UP THE ‘MESS’<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

One could sense this instinct too in\u00a0the\u00a0way he chose cardinals,\u00a0often overlooking traditional power centers\u00a0and\u00a0offering\u00a0the\u00a0Red Hat to\u00a0bishops in places such as East Timor, Mongolia, El Salvador\u00a0and\u00a0even Newark, New Jersey.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

He was\u00a0the\u00a0pope\u00a0of\u00a0simplicity, a man with\u00a0the\u00a0common touch, or in his memorable phrase, “a shepherd with\u00a0the\u00a0smell\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0sheep.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

Just days after his election, he returned to\u00a0the\u00a0rather ordinary priests\u2019 residence where he had been lodging in order to pay his bill in person; he lovingly embraced a man with severe facial disfigurement; he washed\u00a0and\u00a0kissed\u00a0the\u00a0feet\u00a0of\u00a0prisoners\u00a0on\u00a0Holy Thursday; he chose to live, not in\u00a0the\u00a0splendid papal palace but in a small apartment within\u00a0the\u00a0Casa Santa Marta; he never visited\u00a0the\u00a0summer palace at Castel Gondolfo, much loved by his predecessors;\u00a0and\u00a0he eschewed elegant limousines for an almost comically small Fiat.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Through all\u00a0of\u00a0these gestures, he was signaling that he wanted a “poor Church\u00a0on\u00a0behalf\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0poor.” At a time when\u00a0the\u00a0reputation\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Church was at historic lows due to\u00a0the\u00a0clergy sex scandals, this was a source\u00a0of\u00a0great encouragement to many Catholics around\u00a0the\u00a0world.<\/p>\n

He was a pope\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Earth<\/a>. I realize that in saying this, I risk portraying him simply as a Euro-left environmentalist, but this would be a gross misrepresentation.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

FAITH LEADERS REFLECT ON POPE FRANCIS’ DEATH, PAPACY AND LASTING LEGACY: ‘MADE HIS MARK’<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

In summoning\u00a0the\u00a0Church to a concern for nature, which in his phrase had become “a pile\u00a0of\u00a0filth,” he was hearkening back to a biblical\u00a0and\u00a0premodern sense that\u00a0the\u00a0human drama plays out in\u00a0the\u00a0far wider context\u00a0of\u00a0God\u2019s good creation.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The\u00a0title\u00a0of\u00a0his encyclical letter dedicated to this topic \u2013 Laudato si \u2013 <\/i>came\u00a0from\u00a0St. Francis\u00a0of\u00a0Assisi\u2019s Canticle\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Creatures, an ecstatic hymn to\u00a0the\u00a0beauty\u00a0of\u00a0“brother sun\u00a0and\u00a0sister moon.” When\u00a0one reads through\u00a0Laudato si<\/i>,\u00a0one is struck by\u00a0the\u00a0steady polemic against “modernity”\u00a0and\u00a0its “technocratic mentality,” which makes\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0environment nothing but an object for human manipulation.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Francis was most certainly a pope preoccupied with issues\u00a0of\u00a0justice<\/a>, especially between nations. In his encyclical\u00a0Fratelli tutti<\/i>, he called upon\u00a0the\u00a0classic Catholic teaching regarding\u00a0the\u00a0universal destination\u00a0of\u00a0goods\u00a0and\u00a0was called a Marxist for his troubles.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The\u00a0doctrine, sharply articulated by St. Thomas Aquinas, holds that private ownership is valid but that\u00a0the\u00a0use\u00a0of\u00a0what\u00a0one owns should be determined by a primary concern for\u00a0the\u00a0common good. A novelty\u00a0of\u00a0Pope Francis was to apply this principle not just to\u00a0the\u00a0individual but to nations, so that prosperous countries must consider\u00a0the\u00a0suffering\u00a0and\u00a0need\u00a0of\u00a0their poorer neighbors.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

POPE FRANCIS AND US PRESIDENTS: A LOOK BACK AT HIS LEGACY WITH THE NATION’S LEADERS<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Nowhere did this teaching come to a sharper point than in\u00a0the\u00a0pope\u2019s consistent advocacy\u00a0of\u00a0migrants<\/a> seeking a better life.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

If I were to speculate, I imagine what he would most want to be remembered for is his advocacy\u00a0of\u00a0synodality. By this admittedly rather slippery term, he meant a Church marked by listening, accompaniment\u00a0and\u00a0consultation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Pope Francis was always suspicious\u00a0of\u00a0over-centralization,\u00a0and\u00a0synodality in practice is\u00a0the\u00a0means by which\u00a0the\u00a0local churches in all\u00a0of\u00a0their variety\u00a0and\u00a0particularity are brought into\u00a0the\u00a0ecclesial conversation.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

This commitment to synodality was undoubtedly born\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0pope\u2019s deeply Jesuit formation in\u00a0the\u00a0process\u00a0of\u00a0spiritual discernment, which is to say, a patient listening to\u00a0the\u00a0promptings\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Holy Spirit in advance\u00a0of\u00a0making a serious decision. In pursuit\u00a0of\u00a0this goal, Pope Francis sponsored two international synods\u00a0on\u00a0the\u00a0topic, gathering 400\u00a0bishops, priests\u00a0and\u00a0lay people for intense conversations.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINION<\/u><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

I was privileged to be an elected delegate to\u00a0these assemblies,\u00a0and\u00a0I can testify that conversations across ideological, geographical\u00a0and\u00a0cultural boundaries unfolded.\u00a0Whether this effort will have a long-lasting effect\u00a0on\u00a0the\u00a0life\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Church is debatable.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

On\u00a0the\u00a0negative side\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0ledger, I might indicate that, for many,\u00a0the\u00a0pope\u2019s generous outreach amounted to a watering-down\u00a0of\u00a0Catholic moral teaching, especially in regard to\u00a0marriage\u00a0and\u00a0sexuality.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Amoris Laetitia<\/i>\u00a0(which at least hinted at\u00a0the\u00a0possibility\u00a0of\u00a0Communion for\u00a0the\u00a0divorced\u00a0and\u00a0remarried)\u00a0and\u00a0Fiducia Supplicans\u00a0<\/i>(which allowed for\u00a0the\u00a0blessing\u00a0of\u00a0those in same-sex relationships) remain highly controverted documents.\u00a0The\u00a0latter was effectively vacated by\u00a0the\u00a0bishops\u00a0of\u00a0Africa.\u00a0And\u00a0the\u00a0synodal process strikes many in\u00a0the\u00a0Church as a turning away\u00a0from\u00a0evangelical witness\u00a0and\u00a0a turning toward endless\u00a0and\u00a0finally fruitless dialogue,\u00a0the\u00a0Church chattering to itself rather than boldly announcing Christ to\u00a0the\u00a0world<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

At times, too, Pope Francis could appear\u00a0the\u00a0master\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0false dichotomy: mercy rather than moral demand, going to\u00a0the\u00a0margins rather than maintaining\u00a0the\u00a0center, privileging laity over\u00a0the\u00a0clergy, etc. All\u00a0of\u00a0this has led some to hope for a more moderate\u00a0and\u00a0prudent pope after\u00a0the\u00a012 years\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0relatively free-wheeling Francis.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

In\u00a0the\u00a0end, I believe we should appreciate him as a man deeply marked by his Jesuit training to identify with\u00a0the\u00a0person\u00a0of\u00a0Jesus Christ<\/a>.\u00a0And\u00a0this meant, for Pope Francis, to be\u00a0the\u00a0bearer\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0divine mercy,\u00a0the\u00a0one who would invite deeply wounded souls into\u00a0the\u00a0field hospital\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0Church.<\/p>\n

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM BISHOP ROBERT BARRON<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At\u00a0one\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0meetings\u00a0of\u00a0cardinals in advance\u00a0of\u00a0the\u00a0conclave\u00a0of\u00a02013, Jorge Mario Bergoglio,\u00a0the\u00a0archbishop\u00a0of\u00a0Buenos Aires, rose to speak.\u00a0 In simple but provocative language, he called for a Church that goes out\u00a0from\u00a0itself to\u00a0the\u00a0margins, both physical\u00a0and\u00a0existential. A Church that remains<\/p>\n

Continue reading <\/use> <\/svg>BISHOP ROBERT BARRON: The legacy of Pope Francis<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4710,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4713"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4713"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4713\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4714,"href":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4713\/revisions\/4714"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4710"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4713"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4713"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/burn-the-priest.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4713"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}