By Owei Lakemfa
The ascendancy of Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Pope Francis, to the papacy was a trinity of sorts. It was historic, prophetic and redeeming. For 1,272 years, the papacy was occupied by Europeans only, especially the Italians. Some even joked about the Italian Mafia at work. Indeed, some mafia might have at various stages been at work.
For instance, Rodrigo Borgia, Pope Alexander VI made his son Cesare Borgia, a bishop at 15 and cardinal at 18. Cesare wielded considerable power in the papal army, and the only obstacle for him becoming the Captain General of the church, that is the supreme commander of the Papal State Armed Forces, was his uncle, Giovani Borgia. The latter in 1497 conveniently turned up dead in the River Tiber.
Pope Alexander VI was said to be displeased by the reality that Jesus was a Jew from the Middle East, and therefore not a White man or an European with pointed nose, blue eyes, long brown hair and beards. So he commissioned paintings of his notorious son, Cesare as the model of Jesus Christ. Until today, the paintings with an uncanny resemblance of the cunning and ruthless Cesare, are the most common images of Jesus all over the world.
There are bound to be many controversies about the Catholic Church which also held state power. This includes Pope Paul III in 1548 declaring slave trade legitimate in the eyes of God.
There was also the controversy of Pope Pius XII during the Second World War, supporting fascism and the regime of Hitler’s main ally, Benito Mussolini. Also, in the name of neutrality he did not raise his voice against the Holocaust. When about 1,260 Jews were rounded up in Rome and detained outside the walls of the Vatican, the only recorded move by the Pope was to argue that those of them who have been baptised should no longer be considered Jews.
Clearly the Vatican at this stage, behaved like a secular state with a sense of self-preservation, and not a religious or moral authority. Although the Catholic Church has played major transformative roles in the lives of people, these incidents doubtlessly dented its image. So, after the catastrophic Second World War, it needed self-introspection, reformation and relevance to its adherents.
One of the major contributions of Pope Francis to Catholicism, was the restoration of respectability and reliability to the papacy, especially after the August 6, 1978 passage of Paul VI.
I remember the latter and Pope John XIII, particularly for their transformation politics. Particularly for their convocation and holding of the Second Vatican which set the church on the path of reform, tolerance and democratisation. Vatican II also caused the church to see Jesus Christ in the face of every crying child. It equally gave voice to the poor, the needy, and nudged the church towards a people-centred path rather than a theology-based obsession.
One of the major achievements of that conference attended by 2,625 persons, was the introduction of vernacular: allowing mass to be celebrated in local languages alongside Latin, thereby deepening understanding of the faith by the masses. Vatican II declared the Mass as the “source and summit of Christian life” in which there should be the “full, conscious and active participation” of all.
It equally recognised the role of the laity in running the church and the democratisation of the church to allow for collective decision-making amongst bishops.
Vatican II also declared freedom of religion for all human beings, and directed Catholics to stop blaming Jews for the alleged sin of killing Jesus Christ. It also recognised Judaism and preached inter-religious dialogue. To further this, the Second Vatican dropped the hitherto position that Protestants are schematics and heretics. Rather, it referred to them as “separated brethren”. Despite its openness, the Second Vatican did not end clerical celibacy.
Pope Paul VI tried to implement the outcome of Vatican II, especially in modernising the church, promoting inter religious faith and evangelisation. This saw him visiting six continents.
Albino Luciani, Pope John Paul I became pope on August 26, 1978. He combined the names of his two immediate predecessors: one had named him a bishop, and the other appointed him a cardinal. His programmes included implementing the Second Vatican, preaching the gospel and encouraging social justice. He was opposed to homosexuality and cautioned against communism. He rejected the papal coronation, preferring a simple inauguration mass. He was pope for only 33 days before suffering a heart attack, sparking controversy on his death.
Karol Jozef Wojtyla, Pope John Paul II became pope on October 16, 1978. He gave contradictory signals. For instance, as Pope in 1979, he strongly supported and campaigned for the opposition Solidarity Movement in his native Poland that ousted the Socialist government. However, when four priests sided with the revolutionary Sandinistan Movement that ousted the Pro-capitalist Somoza regime, and birthed a socialist government, the staunchly anti-communist Pope John Paul II chided them publicly for holding political positions, and got them de-robed.
When he visited Nicaragua, he angrily wagged his finger at Father Ernesto Cardenal who was Minister of Culture. Other priests in the government included Foreign Minister, Miguel D’Escoto and Father Fernando Cardenal. Father D’Escoto was not recalled until 2014, that is 31 years later. While not frontally fighting Vatican II, he used then Cardinal Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, to beat priests into line. Later as Pope, Ratzinger continued his onslaught against the Second Vatican and pro-people priests. He became so conservative that during the spread of HIV/AIDS, he insisted that the use of condoms was a sin. He was also found to have shielded some priests who engaged in sexual abuse.
Pope Francis was a product and continuation of the Second Vatican Movement. His election was somehow prophetic although the man who made the prediction was not really religious. Fidel Castro in 1973 said: “The United States will come to talk to us (Cuba) when it has a Black President and the world has a Latin American pope.” This prediction came to pass.
Pope Francis named himself after Saint Francis of Assisi who loved the poor. As pope, he worked to end poverty and inequality, and for gender equality. He held that the power of the church is not to exact service but to serve. He campaigned against climate change and environmental degradation. After being elected pope, he flew economy, carried his own bag and, maintained his love for football.
He worked until a few hours before his death on Easter Monday, April 21, 2025. As we await the election of a new pope, can the conclave give the world another pontiff in the mould of Pope Francis? As for the latter, he has ended his earthly journey and is Heaven-bound.
