Distinction Matter - Subscribed Feeds

After 38 days in the Gemelli hospital and two weeks in the seclusion of Santa Marta, Pope Francis has been shown in public again since last Sunday. Following his surprising appearance at the Angelus on Sunday and the associated passing through the Holy Door, Francis was pushed through St. Peter's Basilica yesterday. 

Surprisingly, the head of the Church appeared for the first time without the white robes of the Pope. Had the Pope of gestures already put them aside? But the gestures didn't stop there.

Yesterday at 1 p.m., Francis was surprisingly pushed through St. Peter's Basilica. He greeted some people who happened to be there. During this appearance, he was not wearing the white robes of the Pope. He or any other Pope before him had never been seen like this. Had he become the Jesuit he was before again? He had never given up the black trousers; they were always visible under the white robes, as were the black shoes he had also worn as a Jesuit. The papal robes were placed over them, an always somewhat strange-looking combination that gave the impression of being put on top, as one sometimes perceives with mixed feelings with some religious.

Why such an appearance yesterday? Was there no time to put on the white robes? Why not?

Let's ask the question the other way around. What did Francis have so urgent or pressing to do? Francis was taken to the so-called Altar of Pius X (1904–1914), which means nothing other than the tomb of this holy Pope, with whom Francis actually has very little connection. Pius X is the terror of all progressives, as one tends to call the modernists of that time today. The holy Pope from Veneto actively fought against this intellectual current in the Church. At the same time, Francis also visited the recently restored tombs of Paul III (1534–1549) and Urban VIII (1623–1644).

So what was Francis doing in St. Peter's Basilica? Such visits have not been previously reported of him. We can note, if one wants to find a common denominator, that he visited three tombs. A signal? The three tombs are located in very different parts of St. Peter's Basilica. However, the Popes buried there do not seem to have been a substantive goal, as no common thread can be discerned, certainly not really related to Francis:

Paul III was a Pope of the Catholic renewal after the Protestant schisms. He convened the Council of Trent in 1545 and recognized the newly founded Jesuit order in 1540. Which would be a connection.

Urban VIII was a Pope of Baroque splendor, to whom significant nepotism is attributed and who mainly acted as a patron. Under him, the trial against Galileo Galilei took place, about which Black Legends, spread by enemies of the Church, persist in the collective consciousness to this day.

Pius X, the saint among those mentioned, was distinguished by deep piety and popular spirituality. His main area, for which he is noted in church history, was above all the aforementioned fight against modernism.

Francis asked the security personnel accompanying him to call the two restorers who were finishing work on the restored tombs to him, in order to shake their hands and thank them for their work.

Does the Jesuit order represent a connecting link between the three Popes? This cannot be confirmed either. While Paul III promoted and recognized this then very young order, Urban VIII had a rather ambivalent relationship with it, as he was confronted with conflicts between the Jesuits and other orders and European monarchies. Pius X, on the other hand, had a positive attitude towards the order, which was restored in 1814, which he supported as a defender of tradition as well as in education and mission. That was a long time ago.

It is still unknown whether Francis has meanwhile taken down the Rupnik picture in his study in Santa Marta. Yesterday, the Superior General of the Jesuit order, Father Arturo Sosa, commented on the work of the former Jesuit and artist priest Marko Ivan Rupnik, who is accused of multiple serious abuses, at the seat of the foreign press in Rome. General Sosa said that there is "no uniform rule" for dealing with Rupnik's works. The Jesuit from Venezuela literally said:

Arturo Sosa, Superior General of the Jesuit order, gave a press conference in Rome yesterday.

"I don't think there is a uniform rule for everything, but it depends on how much it really hurts someone."

The question of how to deal with Rupnik's oeuvre is therefore a question of whether someone demands its removal or not, with Sosa adding restrictively that "not a single person should make such a decision [of covering or removing]". Rather, it is the "community" that must "enter into a collective decision-making process."

The former Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith had already established Rupnik's excommunication in the past, but it was miraculously not executed due to higher intervention. Under public pressure, Francis finally ordered a renewed investigation into the case, which has been dragging on without result for almost two years.

The reaction of General Sosa to possible further charges was somewhat strange, as he said: "We are not afraid. If there are complaints, they are welcome." So far, around 30 complaints in the Rupnik case have been received by the order.

However, Rupnik is no longer a member of the Jesuit order, as Sosa emphasized. He was excluded in June 2023 precisely because he did not cooperate with the "healing process." The Society of Jesus, in agreement with the victims, is trying to find "ways of healing," which requires an individual response, because every wound is different.

How Francis deals with Rupnik's legacy could soon become apparent as soon as new pictures from his study are published. What is to be said about yesterday's and the previous appearance, including the brief reception for King Charles III of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and his wife Camilla? Apparently, these are first attempts, in the course of recovery, to sound out a public action by the Pope. Above all, however, the impression is that Francis is to be shown to the public in order to prove his ability to act, which has recently been strongly doubted. Whether this is actually the case remains to be seen. Francis also showed great difficulty speaking yesterday.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi

Image: Video/Facebook/X (Screenshots)

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com