Even atheists love Pope Francis

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Vouthon

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I am truly impressed, surprised and overjoyed at how many atheists have taken Pope Francis into their hearts:

religion.blogs.cnn.com/2013/11/07/atheists-who-really-loooove-this-pope/

The first comment:
“…I may be an atheist, but there’s something about Pope Francis that makes me want to be Catholic. He’s so inspiring…”
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I find this so awesome!!! All he is doing is being a sterling example of Christian charity and love, as Pope Leo XIII once said:
“…The maternal love of the Catholic Church embraces all people…It is the industrious guardian of the teachings of its Founder [Jesus] who, by His words and those of the apostles, taught men the fraternal necessity which unites the whole world. From Him we recall that everybody has sprung from the same source, was redeemed by the same ransom, and is called to the same eternal happiness…”
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- Pope Leo XIII, CATHOLICAE ECCLESIAE, 1890
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Francis lives, breathes and exemplifies this.
 
Amen to that brother Vouthon 🙂

Long may this attraction towards godly attributes continue and bring people together under the sweet smelling fragrances of The Lord 🙂
 
My only prayer is that the love him for the truth he speaks, and not because they have bought into misinterpretations of the Pope’s words. I also hope that should they be drawn to the Catholic Church, that they take solid root, and not be like those Biblical seeds that fall in the cracks, grow for a while, and wither away at the first sign of discomfort.
 
I’m sure many love him because of what they think he will change, how the media twists his words, and how they think they can exploit his informality into something against the Church.
 
I hate when they say it’s only a “PR stunt” though. The man is simply acting in a Christ like manner.
 
Most people, even us Catholics do not know the present Pope personally. What is important is the truth that he says. He is just beginning his papacy. There are many candid issues and what Catholicism’s stand on them that still need to be said and proclaimed. I hope the unbelievers would give him the credit then as much as they do now.
 
SybilMolly said:
I’m sure many love him because of what they think he will change, how the media twists his words, and how they think they can exploit his informality into something against the Church.
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Maybe they just like him for his openness, humility, humanity and warmth.
 
I like Francis. Better than Ratzinger. Don’t get me wrong, I’d still shake Pope Benedict’s hand and respect him as a man, as well as disagree with certain things Francis supports, but there’s just something about the first Jesuit priest that is attractive, such as opting for a tiny chair rather than a throne in order to be at the same height as everybody else.
 
HardRockGTR said:
something about the first Jesuit priest that is attractive, such as opting for a tiny chair rather than a throne in order to be at the same height as everybody else.
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Does any of this make you believe that the Catholic faith is the fullness of revealed truth more than Pope Benedict’s behavior did?
 
MarcoPolo said:
Does any of this make you believe that the Catholic faith is the fullness of revealed truth more than Pope Benedict’s behavior did?
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It might make more people more willing to hear the truth.
 
May I ask, what is it that makes this Pope different to the others?

What is it about this Pope that is so different that a thread like this one was even started?
 
Servant19 said:
May I ask, what is it that makes this Pope different to the others?

What is it about this Pope that is so different that a thread like this one was even started?
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Well normally the internet loves religious flame wars. Atheists and Christians (and people of other religions) always get into fruitless debates. BUT Pope Francis is charismatic enough in his humility to win the hearts of atheists and quench some of the flame wars.
 
Servant19 said:
May I ask, what is it that makes this Pope different to the others?

What is it about this Pope that is so different that a thread like this one was even started?
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He is a Jesuit, unlike literally every other pope in history, for starters.
MarcoPolo said:
Does any of this make you believe that the Catholic faith is the fullness of revealed truth more than Pope Benedict’s behavior did?
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It more shows me the extent to which human decency can reach, with or without bringing God into the picture. Again, with absolutely no disrespect towards the previous pope, as he certainly was a good man and had his own qualities.

In other words, I thought it was pretty cool of Francis to do what I had mentioned, whether Christianity is the truth or not. For example, a Jew or Buddhist could easily respect him for it.
triumphguy said:
It might make more people more willing to hear the truth.
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Also, this. One big problem is that whenever you bring religion into casual discussion, 90% of heads will turn away. Francis seems to be capable of reaching out to those who are afraid of discussing religion and those who do not practice it.
 
Razanir said:
Well normally the internet loves religious flame wars. Atheists and Christians (and people of other religions) always get into fruitless debates. BUT Pope Francis is charismatic enough in his humility to win the hearts of atheists and quench some of the flame wars.
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Oh come on 😛

You mean people engage in fruitless debates on the internet? 🙂
 
What has made people of all faiths and none feel touched by him is his simple, human warmth, humility and openness IMHO.

The image of him kissing the severely deformed man in public (a most wonderful statement of compassion), his humorous donning of a policeman’s hat in the middle of a crowded St. Peter’s square, his refusal to live in the Apostolic Palace but rather stay in the Vatican guesthouse, his willingness to talk amiably with atheists, invite his Jewish Rabbi friend to stay in the Vatican for five days, his non-judgementalism towards others, his washing of the feet of a Muslim woman, his statements on behalf of the poor and oppressed, his day of prayer for Syria, his distaste for small-minded rules, legalism in religion, clericalism…

I could go on but these are the kinds of things that endear him too so many.
 
Vouthon said:
What has made people of all faiths and none feel touched by him is his simple, human warmth, humility and openness IMHO.

The image of him kissing the severely deformed man in public (a most wonderful statement of compassion), his humorous donning of a policeman’s hat in the middle of a crowded St. Peter’s square, his refusal to live in the Apostolic Palace but rather stay in the Vatican guesthouse, his willingness to talk amiably with atheists, invite his Jewish Rabbi friend to stay in the Vatican for five days, his non-judgementalism towards others, his washing of the feet of a Muslim woman, his statements on behalf of the poor and oppressed, his day of prayer for Syria, his distaste for small-minded rules, legalism in religion, clericalism…

I could go on but these are the kinds of things that endear him too so many.
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Hi Vouthon, why does the “person” of the Pope even matter? Doesn’t the Church urge everyone to become attracted to the Catholic Teachings rather than the person?
 
Servant19 said:
Hi Vouthon, why does the “person” of the Pope even matter? Doesn’t the Church urge everyone to become attracted to the Catholic Teachings rather than the person?
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I tend to agree with you, Servant, on this issue. But humans as we are, there are things that attracted to the human’s mind and perhaps Pope Francis has that natural gift. It helps, always. Some of us are maybe unfortunate and born with a disposition, though we try to be nice we can never appear nice and as a result difficult to attract people.
 
Reuben_J said:
I tend to agree with you, Servant, on this issue. But humans as we are, there are things that attracted to the human’s mind and perhaps Pope Francis has that natural gift. It helps, always. Some of us are maybe unfortunate and born with a disposition, though we try to be nice we can never appear nice and as a result difficult to attract people.
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…and I, too agree with you brother Reuben 🙂

I do know that a lot of people around the world cling to a lot of hope with the appointment of this blessed Pope. He truly is a very humble Pope and with humility comes greatness.

I am wondering how though, the person of the Pope, as humble and great as he is to many people, can fulfill the hopes and desires of the worlds peoples?

What things can he do to contribute towards a better world that other Popes have not tried before?
 
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