I wrote this letter to Pope Francis upon his being chosen to lead the Catholic Church. While I doubt he will ever get to see it, I thought you might find it of interest.
Dear Holy Father,
I am a rabbi, an author so long
in this business as to be jaded by much of what happens in the realm of
religion. And yet I found myself strangely hopeful when I learned that Ruach haKodesh, the Holy Spirit, has
call a new pope from the new world to lead the Catholic Church, and that this
new pope has taken a name new to the Papacy, Francis. What better name to
choose, Father! What greater sign that you were chosen by something surpassing
even the College of Cardinals.
So, with all humility, Holy
Father, I am writing to you to you as a would–be friend and well–wisher, and
pray that Pope Francis lets the renewing spirit of St. Francis be your guide.
St. Francis vowed to rebuild
the Church, and people will expect this of you as well, yet they will look for
institutional change rather than spiritual renewal when in fact it is the
latter than is needed most, and which will, in time, lead to the former.
I pray that the simplicity of
St. Francis empower you to bring the simple message of Christ to the world—not
the Church’s message of extra Ecclesiam
nulla salus (“outside the Church there is no salvation”)—but Christ’s
message of justice and compassion: doing unto others what you would want others
to do unto you, knowing that this is whole of the Law and the Prophets (Matthew
7:12). Our Rabbi Hillel, perhaps your rabbi’s rabbi as well, said much the same
thing: “what is hateful to you do not do to another, this is the whole of
Torah,” (Talmud, Shabbat 31a). Nothing is more simple to grasp or more
difficult to do. Yet this is the message of both our faiths; I pray you will
make it the hallmark of your Church. This is the Francis we need.
It is said that Francis spoke
to and befriended the animals. I pray that you will speak for them as well. Jews,
Christians, and Muslims, through our common grandfather Abraham, are called to
be blessings to all the families of the earth (Genesis 12:3). All of them. And
yet our very presence on this planet makes all other families fear us and dread
us (Genesis 9:2). I pray that your Church will befriend the earth and all who
dwell upon her, and stand with others who seek to do the same. This is the Francis we need.
Francis often rattled the
complacency of his Church, and I hope you do the same. There is no rebuilding
without it. While St. Francis dared to stand up to the powers of his day, I
pray that Pope Francis will do no less. I invite you to consider not only your
obligations to your Church, but to the world; not only to your people, but to
the planet. Let the Church be catholic as well as Catholic. I fantasize about
Pope Francis traveling with His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Bishop Desmond Tutu,
the 13 Indigenous Grandmothers, and others to stand in silent witness against
the principalities and powers (Ephesians 6:12) that shroud our world in the
blinding cloak of ignorance, arrogance, fear, and hatred. Your combined
presence would be enough to make the liberating Presence of God palpable in our
hearts and prophetic in your hands.
And lastly may I offer you this,
Holy Father: If you are ever in doubt about your task, if you are ever confused
by the politicking of the pious who will kiss your ring only in hopes of
turning your hand to their agenda, please, Father, remember and return to the
Prayer attributed to Francis, a prayer that you might bring to the world in
both word and deed:
Lord, make me an
instrument of your peace,
Where there is
hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is
injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt,
faith;
Where there is
despair, hope;
Where there is
darkness, light;
Where there is
sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not
so much seek to be consoled, as to console;
to be understood, as
to understand;
to be loved, as to
love.
For it is in giving
that we receive.
It is in pardoning
that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying
that we are born to Eternal Life.
Amen.
I have gone on longer than I
had intended, and I thank you for indulging me. May your tenure as Pope bring
renewal to your people and peace to our world. In the name of the One who
embraces and transcends all names, I wish you great success.
Sincerely,
Rabbi Rami Shapiro
4 comments:
Beautiful Rabbi. The institutional church is, more often than not, the most godless environment; and yet we so long to find meaning there.
I've given up looking for spiritual renewal/depth within any institution; following my own spiritual path means just that.
Bless you for all you do.
This is a most generous, hopeful and optimistic interpretation of what this new pope might mean to his Church. I hope you do in fact send him this letter. He could probably benefit from your viewpoint - one that is broader and more inclusive than most Catholic leaders would be willing to consider.
This is a wonderful tribute! I, too, have high hopes for Pope Francis. He has inspired me so much already and the church so needs this type of leadership. I have seen greed, power hunger, and egos plant their seeds at my church and I pray Pope Francis' humbleness and humility can uproot the corruption. God bless.
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