Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected as the new leader of the Catholic Church on Wednesday evening. Claudia Calleja spoke to senior clerics and others involved in the religious scene for their views on the new pontiff
Archbishop Paul Cremona
He is the first Pope to be called Francis, to reflect the way he used to live… He is the first Pope who is a Jesuit, which means a lot for the Church and also, as he noted when he appeared on the balcony (of St Peter’s Basilica), he came from a Third World country that is Argentina, where he lived a way of life that was close to the people. That means a lot.
Humility is avery important thing as it means you are recognising your own limitations and don’t go beyond them. So, in the context of faith, it means opening yourself up to the Lord.
Auxiliary Bishop Charles Scicluna
I was pleasantly surprised by the man’s humility. There was the great gesture of asking people to pray for him before he would invoke God’s blessing for them. It is an extraordinary example of true dialogue in the Church.
His choice of the name Francis shows special attention to the poor and towards humility and poverty in the Church. He is a man who knows that to be loyal to Jesus Christ and His Church you have to have a brazen face but, at the same time, we realise that he has an extraordinary and very generous heart.
Jesuit Provincial Fr Paul Pace
It’s a nice thing that one of us (Jesuits) was chosen to shoulder this responsibility. But, more importantly, this Pope is from Latin America and comes from a continent where the Church is, perhaps, more alive than in Europe. He is familiar with poverty and the problems experienced by a large country. I think he will have a new perspective. When St Ignatius set up the Jesuit community he wished us to have a universal perspective and not just be locked in ourselves. Over the past 40 years, many Jesuits opted to be of service to faith and promote social justice. That he chose the name Francis is positive. He is everyone’s saint, admired by all. St Francis (of Assisi) was seen as another Jesus who lived a simple life and worked to renew the Church of his times, making it more like the one Jesus had intended it to be.
Jesuit priest Fr Patrick Magro, based in Colombia
Many people came to Mass yesterday evening as a way of thanking God that the new Pope understands the plight of the poor people of Latin America. They were also extremely struck by the fact that one of the first things the new Pope asked of God’s people is to bless him before he himself blessed them.
The choice of name, Francesco, says a lot about two very important characteristics of the new Pope: his love for the poor in the footsteps of St Francis of Assisi and his determination to push forward the mission of the Church in our world today following the great Jesuit saint, Frances Xavier, who went through great struggles and hardships to share the faith with different peoples.
Fr John Caruana, worked in Brazil, a Third World country, for 26 years
It’s positive that he comes from Latin America where there are many Catholics and where the Church helped with structural reforms. The fact that he comes from this environment means he understands the reality of people who live in Third World countries and sees the world through their eyes.
He also understands these people’s suffering. It’s good to practise charity but there are times when charity is not enough and there is need for structural reforms, such as providing the poor with jobs. He can help the world dialogue and better understand the Third World not only from a charity perspective but from a justice point of view.
Mario Gerada, member of Drachma, a Catholic Group of LGBT
It’s beautiful that poverty and distribution of wealth will be on the agenda. I was struck at how he asked for the people’s blessing and he referred to himself as the Archbishop of Rome and not as the Pope. This might mean a fresh approach.
The gay issue is important but you can’t analyse a person on such issues judging by statements he has made so far. So it’s a wait-and-see approach. When he spoke about gay issues, as far as I know, it was in the context of Argentina moving towards marriage equality. He had reacted to that (and said he disagreed). Everyone knows what the official stand of the Church is.
You can’t speak to the Vatican on gay issues by starting from marriage equality. I don’t expect major changes in this lifetime. My only hope is that a dialogue process is opened with the Vatican on gay issues in general.