The Catholic Church on
Tuesday marked the fifth anniversary of Pope Francis's election
to its helm following the shock resignation of Benedict XVI on
February 11, 2013.
It was an ordinary day of work for the 81-year-old Argentine
pontiff, who has won popular support for his modesty and humble
leadership style but also created many enemies among
conservatives and reactionaries for his reforms.
Significantly, the former pontiff blasted prejudice against
his successor in a letter sent ahead of the anniversary on
Monday.
"I applaud this initiative that wants to oppose and react to
the obtuse prejudice for which Pope Francis is only a practical
man devoid of any theological or philosophical training, while I
was allegedly only a theorist of theology who understood little
of the concrete lives of today's Christians," the letter read.
"The volumes of The Theology of Pope Francis presented today
show with reason that Pope Francis is a man of profound
philosophical and theological training and thus help to see the
internal continuity between the two pontificates, albeit with
all the differences of style and temperament," Benedict XVI
wrote.
Meanwhile, in an interview with Vatican News, Vatican
Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin said the "fundamental
characteristic" of Francis' pontificate is joy.
"Then there is the other feature of his Pontificate: mercy,"
he continued. "The third aspect seems to me that of
evangelization, that of the outward looking Church that must
bring the Gospel to all of creation," Parolin said.
"The dynamism that the Pope has stressed and wants to impress
on the Church, can be the cause of different, conflicting and
sometimes even opposing judgments," the Vatican's chief diplomat
continued.
"As regards the criticism I would distinguish between those
that are destructive, aggressive, really bad criticisms - we use
this word - and those that are constructive criticisms," said
Parolin.
The former should be accepted "in cruce" and the latter
"taken into account because it can help, be an aid to
improvement, and even improve one's service", he added.
"I think that constructive criticism is that which arises
from fundamentally an attitude of love and that aim of building
communion in the Church," concluded Parolin.
Anniversary greetings also came in from outside the Church on
Tuesday.
In a Tweet Rome's Chief Rabbi Riccardo Di Segni sent his best
wishes for "Five years of...friendship and good relations".
Former Lower House Speaker Laura Boldrini highlighted the
pope's "courage and humility alongside the poorest and
forgotten. Against inequality, indifference and a culture of
waste. An example for all," she wrote.
Also on Tuesday, the trailer of "Pope Francis - A Man of His
Word", written and directed by three-time Academy Award© nominee
Wim Wenders, was released on Vatican News.
The film, which will be released in the US on May 18, is
intended to be a personal journey with Pope Francis, rather than
a biographical documentary about him.
The pontiff's ideas and message are central to the film,
which presents his work of reform and his answers to today's
global questions regarding death, social justice, immigration,
ecology, wealth inequality, materialism, and the role of the
family.
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