By Deepa Majumdar
(This article is dedicated to Sister Elvira – my Catholic “Other-Mother”)
On the evening of May 8th white smoke poured forth from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, signaling the election of a new pope. Then came the ringing cry – “Habemus Papam” (“We have a Pope”). Then Pope Leo (the 14th) appeared on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica. We were thrilled – not because we have forgotten Pope Francis – but because he reminds us of his august predecessor.
That the conclave elected Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, a humble servant of Christ, as the 267th pope of a worldwide Catholic Church, must have been the grace of the Paraclete (Holy Spirit), which guided the voting members to choose a suitable leader, not just for the church, but for the world. For, the voice of this church matters in global affairs. That they elected a first ever US pope, must have been divine dispensation. For now, more than ever before, the world (especially the US) needs a US-born pope.
When Pope Leo stepped out to greet the world, with the urbi et orbi blessing and simple Christian greeting, “Peace be with all of you” – his whole being expressed a quiet dignity, calmness, detachment, and simplicity. The warmth underlying his veil of reserve was underscored by humility and modesty. He seemed more a dispassionate witness, than a participant in the spectacle orchestrated in his honor.
A presence so quiet and reserved comes from a lifetime of deeds, rather than words. Indeed, one could hear the serene spirit behind his words. The total converse of politicians, who try to impress by empty words rather than deeds, Pope Leo came across as a calm administrator, a servant of both God and man, who has spent decades serving the poorest of the poor in Peru. A vicar of Christ, he will unify fissures both inside and outside the church – especially those between the political Left and Right. A measured person, he is rational without being cold – because faith illumines his reason.
Pope Leo carries a heavy weight – not just because the Catholic Church is now global – but because it is plagued by problems, both internal and external. Internally, the church is torn apart by a fissiparous politics that pollutes the pure spirituality that should always rule as the core of a religious institution. Even with rules that express the highest ethics – human institutions are often torn by warring factions. The Catholic Church is no exception. Such schisms harm all institutions. But they are especially harmful in those that are ecclesiastical. Anything but a benign NGO, as some in the west would like to see it, this church represents the body of Christ. Yet, like a medieval court, it has its intrigues – with many conflicting ideologies (orthodoxy versus reformist, intellectual versus pastoral, ornate protocol and luxuries versus simplicity, etc.) tearing it apart.
Pope Leo is ideal for harmonizing these warring factions – first and foremost, because he is a peace-maker by nature. Even as a child, he once transformed dangerous Chicago gang members, into friends, by just talking to them. Something in his measured voice of love synthesizes and integrates. An able administrator, Pope Leo uses this virtue of love (which is more than a skill) as his surest “weapon.” Indeed, no management school (given their usual bent towards the utilitarian), could possibly inculcate such love in its graduates.
But second, Pope Leo matters because he is a principled pragmatist. Speaking from a podium of Truth, which, St. Augustine identified with Christ, he transcends the impassioned politics of Left versus Right. He is therefore uniquely qualified to harmonize both. Third, his Augustinian roots vest Pope Leo with the monastic ideals so essential for the church right now. As a monk-priest, and as one who has served the poorest of the poor – as a shepherd who smells like his sheep, no matter who they are – he is committed to renunciation. Whether in his diet, or attire, he is, in his simplicity, a worthy follower of Pope Francis. Fourth, Pope Leo has been destined for greatness since childhood, when prescient adults foretold that he would one day be a pope. As a child, he played at being a priest, using his mother’s ironing board as an altar. This proves that he was born with a strong vocation for priesthood and pastoral work. Although St. Augustine eschewed the doctrine of reincarnation – and despite the fact that Pope Leo belongs to the Augustinian order – these extraordinary signs from his childhood prove the veracity of reincarnation. How else do we explain so strong a vocation in a young child?
The self-styled “progressive” political Left identifies with some of the moral positions adopted by Popes Francis and Leo – stances that earned Pope Francis the opprobrium of conservative cardinals, and their censorious charge of being “a woke or liberal” Pope. But Popes Francis and Leo are neither “progressive” nor regressive, even if they sound “progressive.” For they transcend politics. Beset by the deracinating passions, the Left has inordinate “love” for the other, even as it denies its own roots. By contrast, Popes Leo and Francis, given their dispassion, have always been devoted to their roots, even as they served the other. Moreover, the political Left operates mainly discursively – through empty intellectual outpourings that can be severed from deeds by hypocrisy. But Pope Leo, like his predecessor, Pope Francis, is a man of actions.
Yet the criticisms of the Left matter when it comes to the chief shadow darkening Pope Leo’s pontificate. Like his predecessor, Pope Leo faces the ominous shadow of horrific sex abuse and rape scandals that have rocked the church since the twentieth-century. Abuse survivors have accused Pope Leo (like they did, his predecessor), of being inadequate in his responses to guilty priests. Pope Leo has spoken boldly and clearly in defense of the traditional family, bemoaning marriage equality as a kind of moral sophistry. Indeed, the traditional family matters because children are at stake. But children are more damaged when abused and raped by pedophile priests and nuns. While parental betrayal is terrible, that by clergy is worse – because the latter are religious.
The Left would like to hear Pope Leo speak more forcefully against such priests and nuns, than he has in the past – for at least two reasons – because these crimes are sins, and because they are committed by men and women of the cloth. In fact, they would like to hear him prioritize this issue over valorizing the traditional family. Crime deserves punishment – primarily because it is a sin, and only secondarily, because it breaks an existing law. If such laws extend beyond cardinal sins, to cover other issues – then we may conclude that while all sins are crimes, not all crimes are sins. Moreover, that which is not a sin, cannot be a crime, even if it breaks a law. Thus, when Gandhiji used morally sound means to break immoral laws, his actions were neither sinful, nor criminal –but virtuous.
Sexual assault and rape are crimes, not just because they break laws, but more importantly, because they constitute the deadliest of deadly sins. Moreover, a pedophile-rapist priest or nun is far worse than a lay person accused of the same crimes. For such clergy betray a trust far more precious. Their betrayal breaks a far greater covenant than that between adults and children – namely, that vested in religious men and women, who have taken vows of celibacy. For a man of the cloth to sexually assault, rape, and abuse a child, or rape a nun is infinitely worse and therefore deserving of far stiffer punishment (instead of indulgence or cover-ups) than that accorded to a lay criminal. We can only hope Pope Leo will transcend the temptation of ideological Christianity, to deliver the purest ever version of the Catholic religion – through perfected catholicity – by serving as the truest voice for those who are the most voiceless – namely, survivors of clerical rape and sexual assault.
Like HH, the fourteenth Dalai Lama, Pope Leo carries personal moral authority that comes from strength of character – not status, power, or position. The very presence of such moral leaders purifies the collective consciousness, purging it of violence. Their voices are heard well beyond the borders of their religious jurisdiction. Their prayers and meditations alter the winds of history. Hopefully Pope Leo’s moral authority will grow through forthright actions taken to identify, weed out, and punish pedophile-rapist priests and nuns, altering canon law if necessary – actions that should warn potential clerical offenders of dire consequences, should they transgress.
Of secular monarchs, Shakespeare said, “Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.” Indeed, the crown thrust upon a reluctant Pope Leo is heavy. Yet, despite this weight, his inner calm reveals his state of self-surrender. In his moments of silent prayer, I am sure he opens his heart to the Paraclete, so he can serve as a pure conduit of Christ.