The leader of the Catholic Church stood in the Curia in Rome.. the annual Christmas gift is laden with holy rhetoric and stories of God, Jesus, and a Virgin Birth that gave us Christmas..
But Pope Francis’ approach this year was not with tradition.. his words blazed with fire as they were pronounced.. those in attendance were given a harsh admonishment for their ways.. the Pope of the people was sincere in his pronouncements.. he seemingly has found a source of moral ruin within the walls of the Vatican.
The Pope told the Cardinals, some who seemingly looked like they were wincing and squirming in their self-righteous chairs, that there is an ‘illness’ in the churcg raging.. the Pontiff said that bureaucracy at the Vatican was complete with a “disease of feeling immortal” to vainglory and excessive planning.. he said that a church that does not improve is akin to a ‘sick body.’
He railed against the “pathology of power.”
Francis said,
Those who lose their inner serenity, their vivacity and audacity, to hide behind their papers, becoming like procedural machines rather than men of God. This is dangerous to lose human sensitivity, so necessary in order to cry with those who cry and enjoy with those who enjoy.
Even more, Francis went on to say there is a danger of ‘spiritual Alzheimer’s’.. forgetting the story of salvation.. and a ‘lost memory’ when people encounter God after this existence is finalized.
The words were eloquent. Even more, they were hard hitting.
Pope Francis was spot on in his assessment of how gossip prevails in the halls of the Vatican–secret whispers and hints of power playing.. More from Francis:
This is a serious disease that begins simply when people chatter, and it takes over the person, turning the person as a Satan, and in so many cases people are speaking ill about their own colleagues and brothers and sisters. These people haven’t got the courage to speak directly, and they speak about others behind their backs,” he said. “Dear brothers, let us be aware and guard against the terrorism of gossipDear brothers, such diseases and such temptations are a naturally a danger for each Christian and for each Curia. For each community, for any ecclesiastical movement. They can damage both individually and the community. We have to say that only the Holy Spirit and the soul of Christ, only he can protect us from the disease.
We have to cure ourselves of these. Let us try to grow together and close to Christ.
And so it was said.
A Cardinal said it best: This was a dressing down like no other..Cardinal Giovanni Lajolo, the former Vatican governor and foreign minister said “to be honest, nothing like this has ever happened before,’