Changes in the Church: the reforms of Pope Francis

The most important thing to say about any pope is that as he is standing in for Jesus Christ he is inadequate, for he cannot measure up to Christ. The pope must bring his human talents to the job, and as these are limited, so he must always fall behind and below Jesus' standard. Inevitably there will be areas of greater and lesser success, and even failure in his mission of spiritually leading a church of a billion people or more. 

Before going further I must correct one common misconception. Those who  every time a pope is elected declare that doctrine change must be in his in-tray do not realize  that the pope cannot change Catholic doctrine. His role in relation to doctrine is to  be the voice of the church, speaking the shared faith that he holds in common with other Catholics

Let us look at the present pope's two predecessors, John Paul the Second and Benedict the Sixteenth. John Paul had  a Ph.D in philosophy and spoke 12 languages fluently. He had a powerful way with the crowds that attracted people to the church, and his personal diplomacy led to  the ending of the Communist system in Eastern Europe, but he had weaknesses. He struggled to gain support from the intellectuals, whom he alienated by his authoritarianism, and he was so horrified by child abuse that he was in denial of its extent. Furthermore, as he aged and lost his grip the Vatican bureaucracy became ossified, entrenched and self-serving, as bureaucracies do unless the leader gets a grip.  He also needed the advice of the future Benedict the Sixteenth on Theology.

Benedict was a different character. He was seriously slandered by the church's enemies, who accused him of turning a blind eye to abuse. The truth is opposite  to this claim, for Benedict presided over a purge of abusive clerics,most of  whom he laicized and banned from exercising the ministry. Benedict had held professorships of Theology at several leading universities and was a thoroughly able theological writer who produced books on religious matters. He  had the ability to relate to the intellectual world, which compensated for his predecessor's more populist style. But he was not an organisation person, so he struggled with the Vatican bureaucracy, so  when it became clear that the scale of the reform task was so great that it was beyond his failing health he had the courage to abdicate. Enter Francis! 

There is an Italian saying, "After a fat pope a thin one." The meaning of this is that a new pope compensates for the weaknesses of his predecessor. Well, Francis, like Benedict,possesses a Ph.D.in Theology and graduate qualifications in psychology,literature and philosophy, but he lacks the theological expertise of his predecessor. Nor does he have the facility in languages of John Paul. His expertise is in leading institutions, and behind him he has the experience of being in charge of the Jesuit order in Argentina during the dictatorship, during which time he smuggled out people in danger of death out of  the country. He later headed a theological college that trained priests, and then became archbishop of Buenos Aires. During this period he reformed the training of clergy by eliminating unsuitable candidates. In this facility with institutions he compensates for Benedict's limitations, though it is said that he will consult his predecessor on theological matters. 

Francis has weighed into institutional reforms with gusto. I do not foresee that there will be much theological development during this papacy, for this is what the church does not need. What it needs is institutional reform, and this is what Francis will give it. 

One significant reform is the new council. To compensate for the dominating influence of the Curia, the Vatican civil service/bureaucracy, which has had a stranglehold on information and advice reaching the papacy,the present pope has established an eight person council to advise him. This council consists  of cardinals representing different areas of the world. North,Central and South America are represented, as are Asia, Europe, Africa and Australia. There is one representative of the Curia, who is European.  These eight people advise on change in the church, and the function of this group is to counter the deadening effect of the papal bureaucracy. 

Other institutional  changes have been made. For the first time women have been admitted to roles in the curia,  and the pope  has stated that the church needs the talents of women. But the more difficult  changes were with the Vatican bank. The bank had been regarded as a conduit for the criminal money, which was flowing through it because of its inadequate organisation. This is due to the simple fact that priests don't make the best financiers, as they are not   trained in financial matters and their skill set does not include handling large amounts of money. This reform, conducted in the teeth of bank  opposition, has attempted to turn a failing bank into an institution that brings credit rather than disrespect on the church. It involved getting some people out and other,reliable ones into post.

Furthermore, the pope has  retired some senior curial officials who were either no longer up to  the job because of age or because he was dissatisfied with their performance. This has made him some enemies. These changes involved his making a thorough study of Vatican personel, all of which was in addition to the routine work of pope, which involve not only addressing Catholic visitors to the Vatican and diplomats from across the world, but also personally meeting every Catholic bishop in the world in an ad limina visit once every three years. 

But effecting these  reforms is in addition to a a little known aspect of the Vatican's work, which sucks up much of the pope's time: the Vatican's work to prevent war. Since 1945 Vatican diplomacy has been committed to preventing nuclear war and international conflict, and the pope is at the heart of all these diplomatic efforts. A little known and under-appreciated job, but a vital one of world wide significance. 

There are ongoing reforms  that cannot be easily concluded. 

Firstly, there is the refocusing on the church as a church of mercy. As I pointed out earlier Catholic teaching cannot be changed by the pope, so those who want changes in divorce or abortion laws must realize that these laws cannot be altered, no matter how  much pressure there comes from the secular world. But the pope is concerned that while teaching cannot change, the application of it can, and he is seeking to be more merciful in the application of Catholic laws. One area is the treatment of divorced and remarried people. While the church is adamant that Sacramental marriages cannot be ended, and that those in subsequent unions cannot fully participate in Catholic life, Francis is keen tor restore such persons to the sacramental life of the church, so he has urged the bishops to consider communion for people who would otherwise be excluded from it.This project has proved controversial and it is ongoing, as not all bishops agree with him, and he is unwilling to attempt to override their will .

At the root of the problem is the issue of collegiality. There was a division among mediaeval Catholics as to how far the pope could rule without the support of his bishops. Some thought that the pope had the right to be an absolute monarch of the church, whereas others wanted him to rule in conjunction with a council or synod.  John Paul tended to the authoritarian side, whereas Francis is committed to conciliar solutions. This shows in their attitude to synods. John Paul chose the topics to be discussed and told the bishops what  conclusion they were allowed to reach, but Francis has opened the church to genuine discussion, and we are the better for it. This has not meant that we are a church in full agreement, as the discussions mentioned above show, but he is leading the church onwards.    

Francis has set an example in his personal lifestyle, having eschewed the large papal apartment for a room in the Vatican guest house, where he dines in the canteen with other visitors. This is part of an affirmation that the church is not to be part of  the world's establishment, but part of the challenge to  it.  

Every papacy is an ongoing business. Currently the whole Christian church is facing a level of persecution unknown in previous centuries, and much of it is coming from fundamentalist Islam, although there are other sources, though even communism has softened on religion. Secularism produces the irritating niggle of political correctness, which attempts to use equality laws against Christians, but this is not the  worst problem. But while the church is growing in Africa and China, it is weakening in Europe, and there are problems in South America, traditionally a heartland of the church, though I am unconvinced that for many in that area Catholicism was more of a cultural matter.The papacy must lead the church through the pressures that always have and  always will pile upon it, and that is not an easy job. 

There can be no change of fundamental doctrines, but settling the longstanding issue of the role of women in the church is something that will need to be done. for women are crying out for their contribution to be recognized, and in justice it must be. The pope must take the lead on this matter. An early move might be opening the diaconate to women, for there were women deacons[deaconesses] in the early church, and what has been once can be so again.  

There is also the tricky issue of  Christian unity. The Great Schism between the Orthodox Church and the Catholics is nine hundred and fifty years old, and it is time to bring it to a halt. There are suggestions that Francis might be the one to finalize the move, but there are some on both sides who can produce or find obstacles. But both Francis and Benedict have made moves towards better relationships with Protestantism, particularly with the Lutherans, and while  I do not envisage final reconciliation in this papacy, progress is being made. 

In all these issues the papacy must work, knowing that the task will outlive the present papal incumbent. But I will leave you with this thought, that the church will only be free of problems when Christ comes again, until  then  expect problems.