LEONARDO BOFF’S Francis of Rome and Francis of Assisi: A New Springtime for the Church offers intriguing portraits of the current bishop of Rome and the saint that is his namesake. The book provides an introduction to these two extraordinary figures and includes a brief overview of the papacy, tracing how the office of the bishop of Rome eventually became the infallible pope.
The Roman Catholic Church depicted through Boff’s eyes is a church in crisis, reeling from the Vatican Bank and clergy sex abuse scandals. The institution and leadership have lost credibility in the eyes of many and the Roman curia is in need of reform. Yet this crisis is tempered by the election of Jorge Mario Bergoglio as pope, which for Boff fuels a tangible optimism for the church’s future.
Both men in these pages are called to the work of reform. Francis of Assisi’s conversion began when he heard a crucifix in a small church say, “Francis, go and restore my house, because it is in ruins.” Boff depicts Pope Francis as receiving a similar call, to reform the church so that it becomes a church that is poor, emphasizing humility and charity. Boff raises both men as models of living with the poor and like the poor, citing the now famous example of Francis going to pay his hotel bill after being elected pope.
Boff heavily contrasts Pope Francis to John Paul II and Benedict XVI, and is especially critical of the latter’s judgment on ecclesial issues. Boff presents Francis as a voice from the periphery. He is. And yet we must remember that Pope Francis was a cardinal of Italian descent from Argentina, a nation that often identifies itself more as European than American.
For Boff, Francis represents hope and embodies a new openness in the Catholic Church. His use of “Bishop of Rome” as his primary title rejects the elitism previously associated with the papacy. His refusal to live in the Apostolic Palace, instead living in a guesthouse, represents his desire to be in community, as does his pastoral outreach. Francis is a symbol of an inclusive church on the side of the poor that is ready to engage the modern world and the religious diversity that exists within it. This vision is grounded in the concrete life and teachings of the historical Jesus. Boff describes Francis as a pope that is not Euro-centric, Vatican-centric, ecclesio-centric, papal-centric, or conservative.
After concluding Boff’s book I could not help but wonder how much of the real Pope Francis is in its pages and how much of it represents Boff’s hopes for what Pope Francis symbolizes for his theological worldview. It was almost surreal to read a book by a Latin American liberation theologian that is optimistic about the papacy. I appreciate that the book emerges from the concrete moment of the church’s World Youth Day celebration in Rio de Janeiro in 2013. I agree with his claim that the new pope does not need to embrace the term “liberation theology,” but only needs to put the liberation of the oppressed at the center of the church. Actions are much more important than academic categories.
However, I am not as optimistic as Boff. A recent Pew study demonstrates that Latino/as and Latin Americans are leaving the Roman Catholic Church in increasing numbers; I am not sure the “Francis effect” will cause a significant return to Catholicism. While I appreciate that Pope Francis has dramatically changed the papacy’s tone to signal a more open and welcoming church, the teachings, rituals, and theology of Roman Catholicism remain untouched and, in my opinion, stagnant. Boff concludes his book by calling for a new council to address the Catholic Church in light of what Francis’ papacy represents. Perhaps if Boff’s dream is realized, we will one day have the type of church that he depicts in his book. We can only hope.
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