[ANALYSIS] Shattering orthodoxy: Pope Francis, faith and that Fiat 500

In the long line of black SUVs carrying security personnel, a quaint Fiat 500 carrying Pope Francis stood out, eliciting astonishment among American commentators.

Here was Pope Francis being driven around in a simple car, a far cry from the saloons and SUVs ordinarily used by visiting dignitaries.

This contrast may appear as a curious piece of gossip, one that elicits a smile, but it is representative of Jorge Bergoglio’s five-year-old papacy.

The archbishop of Buenos Aires, Cardinal Bergoglio, was a little-known man before the conclave of cardinals chose him to head the Catholic church in March 2013.

The few moments of apparent hesitation as he took his first steps on the main balcony in the Vatican five years ago were soon followed by a homely greeting to the thousands of Catholic pilgrims gathered in St Peter’s Square that night.

A wave of endearment ensued as Bergoglio asked the people to pray for him in silence before he gave his blessing to the crowd.

The choice of name – Francis – made it immediately apparent that the new Pope would lead a church that made a preferential option for the poor.

But it is not just through the symbolism of running around in an ordinary car or wearing simple clothes that Pope Francis has grabbed attention. His communication style is another asset that has left many listening.

Fr Jimmy Bonnici

For Fr Jimmy Bonnici, a defining characteristic of Pope Francis is the way he manages to translate the Gospel into concrete lifestyle choices.

“It is his concrete way of speaking about problems society faces such as consumerism, corruption and poverty, that helps people connect with the Pope,” Fr Bonnici says.

Pope Francis’s frankness and simple language is also evident in his official writings, suffice to say that Amoris Laetitia, the exhortation released in 2016 focusing on family life and relationships, contains multiple references to situations people can identify with. One minor detail is a reference to parental concerns when children coming of age start venturing out of the family – hardly a situation you would expect the Pope to speak about.

But it is these flashes of ordinary life in his words that give Pope Francis credibility when he speaks, Fr Bonnici believes.

This has prompted many to stand up and listen to his words, something which priests like Fr Bonnici feel is a positive thing.

“This does not mean people are flocking back to the Church but there are many more who can connect to the Pope’s message… There are no magical solutions but the Pope is encouraging us to change our attitude and this will be beneficial in the long run,” Fr Bonnici says.

The Pope’s simple message has been derided by some critics as lacking a theological foundation but the best defence he received was from his predecessor Benedict XVI.

On the eve of the fifth anniversary of Pope Francis’s election last week, the retired Pope defended the continuity of the Church’s teaching under his successor.

In a letter sent to Mgr Dario Vigano, prefect of the Vatican Secretariat for Communication, Pope Benedict applauded the publication of a new book series entitled, ‘The Theology of Pope Francis’.

“It contradicts the foolish prejudice of those who see Pope Francis as someone who lacks a particular theological and philosophical formation, while I would have been considered solely a theorist of theology with little understanding of the concrete lives of today’s Christian,” the retired pontiff wrote.

“Mercy is the Pope’s hallmark,” says Archbishop Charles Scicluna

Benedict’s endorsement comes as a reprieve in the face of internal church opposition Pope Francis has had to face over his opening to Catholics in complex family relationships as outlined in Amoris Laetitia.

Some of that opposition was also evident in Malta when the bishops released guidelines for the pastoral care of divorced and remarried Catholics, among others.

Archbishop Charles Scicluna describes the papal exhortation as “an extraordinary document” that tries to give an adequate pastoral response to the everyday problems families face. These include people who in the eyes of the Church are in complex situations.

Pope Francis has conveyed the image of a Pope who is very close to the man in the street with his direct way of communicating, Archbishop Scicluna believes.

“Mercy is the Pope’s hallmark… he has been supportive of bishops trying to respond in a pastoral way to the difficulties of people in complex relationships by showing mercy while being loyal to church doctrine on the family,” Archbishop Scicluna says.

The archbishop says Pope Francis has not shied away from rocking the boat. “But he does it in a good way,” he adds.

Archbishop Scicluna says the Pope has challenged church people to recall the basic values of the Gospel. “The Pope does so through his gestures, his own lifestyle and in his direct way of speaking. He portrays a beautiful and very positive image of Jesus the Shepherd, who accompanies his flock rather than sits in judgement on it.”

Gozo Bishop Mario Grech says “Through his fresh, simple words and actions, Francis has rekindled hope in the Church”

It is a reflection Gozo Bishop Mario Grech agrees with. Bishop Grech had attended the two synods on the family called by the Pope in 2014 and 2015 that preceded the release of Amoris Laetitia.

“Pope Francis’s authentic way of living the Gospel has shaken many Christians and structures of the Church and five years is not enough to digest the impact he will have,” Bishop Grech says.

The Bishop believes Pope Francis “jump-started the engine” of the Second Vatican Council which was held more than 50 years ago. He says the ‘engine’ had stalled over the years, even in Malta.

“Pope Francis put the Church back on the agenda, not necessarily at the centre but on the agenda at a time when it was being side-lined or when it chose to take a step back,” Bishop Grech says.

But the Pope’s message has been a challenge for priests as much as it has been for lay people, he adds.

Bishop Grech says Pope Francis has challenged priests to stand at the periphery and look at themselves from the eyes of those standing on the outside. It is not easy for those used to being at the centre, he admits.

However, in painting a picture of a church tending to the wounded on the battlefield, Pope Francis has imbued the notion of mercy, Bishop Grech says.

“Through his fresh, simple words and actions, Francis has rekindled hope in the Church. Over the past five years I have experienced people who approached God and re-engaged with Christ in an attempt to discover more. These people have not necessarily come back to church but Francis has made them curious and that is a good thing,” Bishop Grech says.

Outspoken priest Fr David Muscat, is full of praise for Pope Francis’s defence of the poor. He describes the Pope as “socially conservative and economically socialist” in his outlook.

“He is a good Pope… he speaks on poverty and social and environmental injustices… a message that is relevant to Malta where construction is rampant and the flats being built are nowhere near what a person on the minimum wage can ever afford to buy or rent,” Fr Muscat says.

But Fr Muscat, a critic of what he says is the media’s incorrect interpretation of Amoris Laetitia, has but one gripe about the Pope.

“Francis does not follow the news and so is not sensitive to how his words can be manipulated,” Fr Muscat says.

He cites as an example Pope Francis’s comment on the flight back to Rome from Brazil in July 2013 when asked by a journalist what he would tell a gay person who comes to confession. “Who am I to judge?” was Pope Francis’s response.

“Francis’s words were taken out of context and interpreted as if the Pope was endorsing same-sex marriage. This is not the case and in Amoris Laetitia the Pope specifically said there were ‘absolutely no grounds’ to place unions between gay people on the same level as marriage,” Fr Muscat says.

He also offers a reductionist approach to Amoris Laetitia that differs from the generally held notion that it served as an ‘opening’ to Catholics in irregular situations.

“What the Pope said was that Catholics in these complex situations should start a discernment process with their spiritual director and only at the end of such a journey should it be decided how and what to do… there was no rejection of Church teachings on marriage and the family,” Fr Muscat argues.

Fr Muscat’s blunt depiction of Pope Francis contrasts with the views of others within the Catholic Church who see the round edges in the man.

Perhaps Fr Bonnici sums up this ‘conflict’ when he argues the Pope has challenged priests to be more engaged with the people they serve.

“The Pope’s direction has been to encourage us to walk with people and help them to choose good within the circumstances they find themselves in,” Fr Bonnici says.

He likens the Pope’s message to a GPS that provides alternative routes to the same destination even if the driver veers off the original path.

This approach is distinct from the traditional black and white depiction of the Catholic faith.

If anything, Pope Francis has injected grey into the equation and some feel this has only helped remove the certainty of faith in an ever-changing society.

This is more of an issue in a Malta where social change over the past five years has been rapid and wide-ranging with the introduction of divorce, gay marriage and intense debates on embryo freezing.

Fr Bonnici acknowledges the challenge this poses but does not subscribe to the view that Pope Francis has made the Catholic faith irrelevant.

The frugal Pope, in a Fiat 500...

“The Pope is not saying the compass has no north but what he is proposing is helping people find the best possible direction even if they live in the most complicated of situations,” Fr Bonnici says.

This approach requires a renewal among priests but also among lay people because it means a deeper understanding of Christ’s message of mercy, he says.

Pope Francis’s balancing act between uncompromising doctrine and a merciful approach that is not judgemental may be hard to comprehend. It has challenged conservatives and liberals alike.

The Archbishop describes Pope Francis as a man of “great wisdom and immense humility”, who makes people feel comfortable in his presence.

This is possibly the Pope’s winning card in his drive for change. And while the jury may still be out on how deep that change has been, it is clear that in just five years, Pope Francis has already left his mark on the Catholic church.