The Pope keeps it simple

The Pope keeps it simple

-Bernard Fernandes

Pope Francis amazes me.  Ever since he was ordained the Pope of the Universal Catholic Church, he has not ceased to impress and inspire.  His training, his discipline and his strong beliefs do not make it difficult for him to reach out to and strike a chord with the masses.  Media, heads of states and religion, artists and ordinary people hold him in high esteem and have not stopped singing paeans of his extraordinary yet simple deeds.  

His jovial and emotional appearances are not to be missed. At the recent World Youth Day celebrations in the highly strung Brazil - remember the recent spate of riots and unrest at the time of the Confederations Football tournament - he went about with an ease that comforted millions. While Brazil may have pulled out all the stops to make this trip a safe and memorable one, yet much of its success will be owed to the strong magnetic personality of Pope Francis.  It was reported that he opted to travel in open-air vehicle instead of the insulated, armored Popemobiles of his predecessors. An estimated one million people surrounded him at every turn. On the last day he drew a crowd of three million at an all night-vigil.

He is known to speak his mind – and that is simple, down-to-earth, concerned, honest and brave.  Here is what he said to the youth in Brazil – that which has hit the headlines of every magazine, journal and social networking sites:

"We need saints without cassocks, without veils. 
We need saints with jeans and tennis shoes. 
We need saints that go to the movies, that listen to music, 
that hang out with friends.
We need saints who put God in first place, 
ahead of succeeding in any career. 

We need saints who look for time to pray every day and who know how to be in love with purity, chastity, and all good things. 

We need saints, Saints of the 21st century 
with a spirituality appropriate to our new time.

We need saints that have a commitment to helping the poor 
and to make the needed social change. 

We need saints to live in the world, to sanctify the world and 
to not be afraid of living in the world by their presence in it.

We need saints that drink Coca-Cola, that eat hot dogs, 
that surf the internet and that listen to their iPods. 

We need saints that love the Eucharist, that are not afraid or embarrassed to eat a pizza or drink a beer with their friends.

We need saints who love the movies, dance, sports, theater. 
We need saints that are open, sociable, normal, happy companions. 
We need saints who are in this world and who know how to enjoy the best in this world without being callous or mundane. 

We need saints."

In another message, addressing a rally, he said, ‘The measure of the greatness of a society is found in the way it treats those most in need, those who have nothing apart from their poverty.’  No wonder the Pope made an equally strong statement when he challenged priests to bring the message of the Gospel to the world’s slums.  “It is in the favelas… that we must go to seek and serve Christ,’ he told thousands of bishops, priests and seminarians from around the world gathered for a mass at Rio's St. Sebastian Cathedral. ‘We cannot keep ourselves shut up in parishes, in our communities, when so many people are waiting for the Gospel!’ Speaking exclusively to the Bishops of Brazil, he said, ‘It is not enough simply to open the door (of the Church) in welcome, so that they (the faithful) may enter, but we must go out through that door to seek and meet the people!”

The Pope will not stop challenging us. His message will continue to echo – lo, it should not be lost or forgotten – in the world, the streets and in the hearts of the people.  ‘Go, do not be afraid and serve’ was his parting message to the youth in Brazil; he invites each of us to do likewise!