It's been a little over two years since Pope Francis became head of the Roman Catholic Church, after Benedict XVI's resignation. In that time, His Holiness has been in the news a great deal for both official and passing statements, all of which have made abundantly clear that he is not afraid to court controversy. I must admit I've enjoyed his candour, even though it lends his words to misrepresentation, as it did last week when he spoke on capital punishment.
To be clear, I'm not about to "back pedal" on behalf of the Pope, even though some of my friends at church like to joke that in my early days of conversion to Catholicism, I could sound, in both tone and emphasis, "more catholic than the Pope." I respect Church hierarchy and the mechanisms of the Vatican too much to make excuses for the Bishop of Rome. Besides, his statements were clear and uncompromising: "there is no humane way of killing another person."
A small firestorm of controversy erupted over these words, as the more progressive elements of the Church said amen and thanked God for finally sending them a forward thinking leader, while the more conservative ones wondered aloud if the Pope had forgotten his catechism or attempted to twist his words to fit what Church doctrine prescribed. Like many of his past comments, it will die to the world with the news cycle, but live on in interested minds.
Obviously, these words pose a conundrum to myself as well. My opinion about capital punishment, with the usual caveats about evidence, due process, and the direness of the crime, ought to be well known by now. But on a personal level, I have been given reason to pause and reconsider my opinion - on the highest clerical authority, in fact.
I'll let you know if my opinion changes. However, what might be even more important, at least if my friend Gerry Chidiac weighed in, is the opportunity to consider another point of view.
Many of us, regardless of our political allegiance, can get stuck in binary modes of thinking about certain policies and projects. As I've mentioned in this column several times, it's at the Left's electoral peril that it maintains an anti-gun mentality, just as the Right's guilt multiplies with every year education is underfunded or adult illiteracy grows. Unfortunately, there is more to be gained in our fallen world by pointing to your brother's splinter than removing the log from your own eye, largely due to the media.
Into this world of divided loyalties, which even the papacy cannot escape entirely, Pope Francis' words offer a third point of view, by questioning the very pitch on which the culture wars are being waged. Historically speaking, this has long been Western religion's role in the political world, and it is clear that His Holiness is seeking to continue in the vein of his predecessors. In an age of blind, ideological loyalty, Francis offers a light of reasonable hope.
And for that, regardless of my opinion, I am deeply grateful.
