The Passing of a Pope
Everyone must know by now that Pope Francis has died. What timing! How remarkable that he was able to muster the strength to compose an Easter message and travel among the crowds of people in Rome to offer a blessing. Then, when Sunday’s celebrations settled into a quiet Monday morning, he found his eternal rest.
Soon the process to find a new pope will begin. What strikes me about Francis’s passing is that this is yet another significant transition on the world stage. Whatever one may think of the pope, the role he plays is important. The Church (meaning all churches collectively) is an institution that is supposed to distill biblical awareness into moral guidance—we look to the church for how we should live and act. (This is why corruption and abuse in the church are so abhorrent because they are signs that the church has abandoned its primary role and responsibility.) Anyway, you can see how Pope Francis fulfilled this role in his final Easter message in which he pleads for the end of war and compassion for migrants.
When vulnerable people suffer from violence or starvation, or when selfish consumption pollutes the environment, or when whole societies are eroded by cynicism and distrust it’s the church’s role to argue the case for mercy and righteousness. The church can only do this when it is steeped in God’s love for humanity and is able to rise above its private interests. So, as the bishops gather to select the next pope, they must set aside partisanship in order to discover the one who will speak with integrity as well as authority for the sake of the world.
For this reason, I would urge you to pray for the Roman Catholic Church and for the bishops in their discernment. While the papal succession does not affect our church, it does affect our world. And it would seem as if the world is in the middle of a difficult transition—as if we were a hermit crab that has outgrown its shell and must brave uncertainty and even danger as it seeks out its next structure. If there was ever a time to pray, it is now, for the church and for the world.
Blessings,
Pastor Jen
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