Francis Lightening Up

“Lighten up Francis.”

Sergeant Hulka (Warren Oates) Stripes

           

            When Bishop Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst of Germany okayed $600,000 worth of art and over a million bucks in landscaping to his $42 million living quarters in Limburg, the current Pope decided that something stank other than the region’s cheese.  So Bishop Tebartz-van Elst Gonzalez Alonzo McDuck Trust-Fund Maria O’Mally Thurston Howell III got called on the carpet.  He walked in a bishop and walked out off the every day roster.  He’s taking an “unspecified leave” according to a Vatican statement.  Kind of like when a TV show goes on hiatus, usually never coming back.  I’m still bitter about Keen Eddie…where was I?

            My first reaction was that a man living in something called the Apostolic Palace telling another man that living in a palace is wrong is like the pot calling the kettle…a pot.  But then I read that Mr. Pope Francis doesn’t live in the A&P, which I can only assume is the nickname for that building, but instead lives in a building called Domus Sanctae Marthae (Saint Martha’s House) which is a sort of apartment building for visiting clergy and the cardinals during a conclave.  Its total cost was $20 million, less than half of Elst's digs, but that’s probably because unlike the German Bishop’s abode, it doesn’t include much landscaping or a pig to warm your feet while you sit on your throne.

            In fact, Pope Francis has been humble in both his living quarters and daily activities for while.  I remember reading that even as a Cardinal he lived in a simple apartment and took the bus to work. 

            But that’s not the only place where Pope Frank’s progressiveness shows.  He has recently called upon The Church to shift its focus to the poor and the sick, and suggested that Christian Right here in the good old U.S.A dial back their anti-gay and anti-abortion obsession down from eleven.

            So I guess that even though I’ve likely long ago been excommunicated from The Church and really have no say in the matter, I like the new Pope.  He’s defiantly got a lighter attitude that his predecessor.  Maybe it’s all show.  Maybe it’s a distraction from the many “indiscretions” that have dogged its steps lately, but either way you gotta like the message.