Habemus Papam - Pope Francis

The Lord bless him, and give him life, and make him blessed upon the earth, and deliver him not into the hands of his enemies!

God bless Pope Francis – formerly Jorge Mario Cardinal Bergoglio, S.J., Archbishop of Buenos Aires.

I was awoken to the news breaking via radio, and raced to turn on the television, hear the Habemus Papam, and then watched him come forth, listened to him speak, and received his Apostolic Blessing. I was moved by his evident piety, in asking for prayers for Benedict XVI, leading the crowd in a Pater, Ave and Gloria, and then asking all to pray for him – which the vast host did, falling silent in prayer – before he gave all the world his blessing.

He certainly looks a Pope, humble and kindly.

At Mass at Carmel this morning, my parish priest offered the Sacrifice for our new Pope, and reminded us that Our Lord doubtless says to His Vicar what He once said to St Francis of Assisi: "Rebuild My House, which is falling into ruin".

His radical choice of name speaks of the voluntary poverty and humility and evangelizing zeal and love of Christ and His Church that was the mark of St Francis; and it refers also to the great Jesuit missionary St Francis Xavier.

His episcopal (and now papal) motto, miserando atque eligendo, "lowly and yet chosen", has certainly come true! It apparently derives from St Bede the Venerable's Homily 21 for the feast of St Matthew the Evangelist:

Vidit ergo Jesus publicanum, et quia miserando atque eligendo vidit, ait illi, Sequere me. Sequere autem dixit imitare. Sequere dixit non tam incessu pedum, quam executione morum.

(For Jesus saw the tax collector, and because he saw one who needed mercy and to be chosen, he said to him “Follow me”. And he said “follow” meaning “to imitate”. He said “Follow” not so much with the movement of the feet, as by the practice of life.)

God grant that this son of St Ignatius in all things work for the greater glory of God: for what we need now is holiness, the only cure for the ills of the Church and the world.

His Holiness has asked our prayers – pray therefore:

Almighty and everlasting God, have mercy on your servant Pope Francis, our Supreme Pontiff, and direct him, according to your loving kindness, in the way of eternal salvation, that with your help he may ever desire that which is pleasing to you and accomplish it with all his strength. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Lord Jesus, shelter our Holy Father the Pope under the protection of Your Sacred Heart. Be his light, his strength and his consolation.

Vale, Pater Sanctissime

I made sure I sat up on Sunday night to watch the Pope's last Angelus address live. (When actually in Rome, I never made it to the Angelus, since the High Mass at Santissima Trinità clashed.) As I type, I have the Pope's last General Audience – held in St Peter's square – streaming live (he spoke in English just a little earlier); at least I did go to one of those when in Rome, though it was held indoors. Indeed, I was also able to attend one of his public Masses, including his consecration of three bishops at St Peter's; I recall being in the vast congregation close to the statue of St Philip Neri, seeing him at the high altar, celebrating the Divine Mysteries...

Having watched the Angelus, I replayed footage of the 2005 Habemus Papam announcement, and His Holiness' first appearance on the loggia, to impart the Papal Blessing Urbi et Orbi. How happy I was eight years ago, being awoken to the joyful news of his election at 3 am, and rushing to the chapel to say a glad Te Deum!  Where have the years gone?  "Time, like an ever rolling stream, / Bears all its sons away..." – having reviewed what then came to pass, I felt quite sad to be at the end of his pontificate, whose outset was such a marvel.

What a dear Pope, and how much I shall miss him! I do wish somehow, impossibly, that he decides not to abdicate after all – but, whatever I may think, he is Pope, and he is judged of none; and his acts as the Vicar of Christ are those of the Lord's Plenipotentiary on earth, effective non autem consensu Ecclesiæ.  Indeed, Roma locuta est, causa finita est.

My cat has just arrived on my lap, and how fitting that she may soon receive the Papal Blessing via television as I will; after all, the Pope loves cats, and (as St Bernard wrote) "Love me, love my dog"! – she mustn't have liked that last phrase, fickle creature, for she's gone off purring elsewhere...

The good Pope, having spoken at length in Italian, and then more briefly (in response to respectful addresses of successive prelates) in French, English, German, Spanish, Portuguese and Arabic, now gives his last paternal greetings in Croatian... in Czech... in Slovak... in Romanian... again he is addressed and then speaks in Italian...

I sing along with the plainchant Pater noster, chant reply to the versicles Sit nomen Domini and Adjutorium nostrum, and kneel to receive – as I am taught is truly imparted even via audiovisual transmissions – the Apostolic Blessing.

Most Holy Father, may God reward and keep you ad multos annos, ad vitam æternam. Amen.