Is Pope Francis Leaving Vatican At Night To Minister To Homeless?

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Italian rumor mill: Pope sneaks out to help the poor.
What usually happens next is that some English language outlet will grab the headline and start reporting that the Pope goes out to help the poor every night. As a matter of fact ā€“ isnā€™t he the wonderfullest Pope ehvur? ā€“ he wears disguises and drives in his old Renault 4! Then the comparisons to The Shoes of the Fisherman start up. And then the headline is, ā€œPOPE TO SELL ST PETERS CATHEDRALā€ā€¦ which is absurd, of course, because it isnā€™t a cathedralā€¦. aside from the fact that it is ABSURD.
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Prophetic words, lol
 
ReConverted said:
I donā€™t get your point. If you donā€™t mind, would you please clarify? Thanks!
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Well, it seems, according to the ā€˜Italian rumo(u)r millā€™ account that the ā€˜Huffingtonā€™ account could well be a case of making what is 2+2 equal 5. The original conversation smacks more of ā€˜enigmatic possibilityā€™ rather than of simple and clear fact.
 
Elizium23 said:
Italian rumor mill: Pope sneaks out to help the poor.
What usually happens next is that some English language outlet will grab the headline and start reporting that the Pope goes out to help the poor every night. As a matter of fact ā€“ isnā€™t he the wonderfullest Pope ehvur? ā€“ he wears disguises and drives in his old Renault 4! Then the comparisons to The Shoes of the Fisherman start up. And then the headline is, ā€œPOPE TO SELL ST PETERS CATHEDRALā€ā€¦ which is absurd, of course, because it isnā€™t a cathedralā€¦. aside from the fact that it is ABSURD.
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šŸ‘ I think Fr. Z gave the best response, as usual. This does seem like itā€™s being taken out of context and the media just running with it to show just how much better Francis is than Benedict. A sad day when people start pinning popes against each other like this šŸ˜¦
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I agree. I have nothing against Francis, and I admire him greatly for his attention to the poor and marginalized, but this is a disturbing tendency of the media and the general public: a tendency to take a kernel of truth (buffing up the Almonerā€™s Office) and create rumors to inflate this Pope into a man of mythical proportions. It is this same effort that seeks to aggrandize one Pontiff while implicitly or even explicitly denigrating one or more of his predecessors. It is a slap in the face to the living Pope Emeritus that many of the same people who idolize Francis now consider Benedict to be a mean old man in a dress. It is hypocritical to jump on this bandwagon.

Sure, there have been good popes and there have been bad popes, and Lord knows that I have my own personal favorites. But faithful Catholics should keep in mind the central point: that this is a mere man who occupies the Chair of Peter, and as Vicar of Christ he is a servant to all of us. We cannot allow our personal admirations to develop into a cult of personality, or worse into a spirit of dissent that grumbles and complains against Pontiffs who were duly elected and had a valid reign and did many good things in the service of the Church.
 
Who cares really. I canā€™t see how a rumor like this can be bad, even if itā€™s false. I have an entire book that is made up of rumors (most of which are probably false) about St. Francis (Little Flowers).
 
Youā€™re absolutely right about the Little Flowers of St. Francis. Itā€™s not a historical work at all. Most of it is legend. Like all legends, theyā€™re based on a kernel of truth. But the kernel is not that big.

As to Pope Francis sneaking out? It wouldnā€™t be the first pope to do it. Pope John XXIII did it and so did Pope John Paul II. Pope John XXIII admitted it in his autobiography. Pope John Paulā€™s secretary admitted it in his book. He knew all about it.

They didnā€™t wear disguises. The simply dressed like any other Roman priest and they merged into the crowd. I donā€™t think it was a daily event. But they did it more than once.

Pope John XXIII said that he did it to get away from the people at the Vatican and get out among real people. Read Journal of a Soul and be prepared to laugh and cry.
 
I also feel that we should temper enthuiasm, especially when making ā€œcomparisonsā€ to Pope Benedict or the whole attitude of ā€œfinally a Pope that ____ā€ as if others did not. Itā€™s also telling in the media, such as the Newser version of the story, how it ends with a line about if you are getting sick of too much ā€œpro-popeā€ news, and then it links to an anti-Catholic article.
 
BlessedLDS said:
šŸ‘ I think Fr. Z gave the best response, as usual. This does seem like itā€™s being taken out of context and the media just running with it to show just how much better Francis is than Benedict. A sad day when people start pinning popes against each other like this šŸ˜¦
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Iā€™m not sure if all of us posting here actually read the article in the OP. Your ā€œhow much better Francis is than Benedictā€ puzzles me. The HuffPo article mentions other pope, including Pope Benedict, who have been known to indulge in ā€œnocturnal wanderingsā€. I donā€™t see where they pinned one pope against the other.
 
seekerz said:
Iā€™m not sure if all of us posting here actually read the article in the OP. Your ā€œhow much better Francis is than Benedictā€ puzzles me. The HuffPo article mentions other pope, including Pope Benedict, who have been known to indulge in ā€œnocturnal wanderingsā€. I donā€™t see where they pinned one pope against the other.
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They are just applying the general theme of the secular media since his installation that is all. In other words, ā€œitā€™s par for the course.ā€šŸ˜¦
 
Lapey said:
They are just applying the general theme of the secular media since his installation that is all. In other words, ā€œitā€™s par for the course.ā€šŸ˜¦
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Sometimes I think the Father just sits there looking at us and shaking His head in something akin to bemusement (not that God can really experience confusion, but Iā€™m at a loss for the exact word). The point is that, something bad happensā€¦we moan and complain. Then something good happens, and weā€¦
 
seekerz said:
Sometimes I think the Father just sits there looking at us and shaking His head in something akin to bemusement (not that God can really experience confusion, but Iā€™m at a loss for the exact word). The point is that, something bad happensā€¦we moan and complain. Then something good happens, and weā€¦
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Cannot disagree with you at allā€¦unfortunately
 
I very much doubt that he even could. Really, letā€™s be honest here: Heā€™s the Pope. Heā€™s one of the worldā€™s most powerful people. People like him who have a plethora of global influence are usually under constant, heavy security.
 
Of course if he is truly powerful enough then he has power to dispense that security. Youā€™re a Swiss Guard and the Pope gives you a direct order to step aside while he sneaks into the city. Whom do you obey, your commander, or Peter?

Itā€™s all hypothetical anyway. I donā€™t believe the rumor. But itā€™s got legs because it is so plausible.
 
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