Carroll calls attention to the response that Pope Francis gave in a published interview with a Jesuit. When the interviewer asks Pope Francis to say who he is, he says, "I am a sinner. This is the most accurate definition [of who I am]." But do these words show that he has learned that he is a sinner from suffering his own shortcomings and sins? Or do these words show that he is suffering from a bad case of hyper-scrupulosity?
NOT A LIBERAL, BUT MAY BE A RADICAL
In terms of intramural church politics, Carroll concludes that Pope Francis is not a conservative like John-Paul and Benedict nor a liberal like himself, but he may be a radical. Carroll says, "It is clear that Pope Francis is not a liberal. But if he initiates a true shift in the way that power is exercised in the Church, he may turn out to be a radical."
Toward the end of his piece, Carroll says, "Francis is clearly a world figure, but a figure of what?" This is an excellent question to ask. In other words, what, exactly, does Pope Francis aim to do as pope?
Next, Carroll proceeds to suggest a possible answer to this question by quoting a statement that Pope Francis made to young people in
"I want the Church to be in the streets, I want us to defend ourselves against all that is worldliness, comfort, being closed and turned in. Parishes, colleges, institutions must get out, otherwise they risk being becoming NGOs, and the Church is not a non-governmental organization."
Then Carroll says, "But, of course, the Church is an NGO -- the largest in the world." I agree with Carroll that the Roman Catholic Church is the largest NGO in the world. However, I suspect that this literal interpretation of the pope's words is probably beside the point, because I suspect that he is speaking figuratively here. But let's set aside the pope's remark about the church possibly becoming a NGO. Let's concentrate instead on the other points in the pope's statement.
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