{"id":4512,"date":"2013-03-18T23:00:42","date_gmt":"2013-03-19T05:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/marccardaronella.com\/?p=4512"},"modified":"2020-09-10T15:18:28","modified_gmt":"2020-09-10T21:18:28","slug":"pope-francis-evangelist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/marccardaronella.com\/blog\/2013\/03\/18\/pope-francis-evangelist\/","title":{"rendered":"What’s in a Name? Francis Stands for Evangelist"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"pope-francis-evangelist\"<\/a>I just want to say I’m thrilled\u00a0with our new Pope Francis!<\/p>\n

I mentioned that the last time I watched a papal election<\/a>, it was with my pastor on a TV\u00a0outside my office.<\/p>\n

This time I shared the election with 1,900 eager, anxious Catholics on Twitter.\u00a0It’s a whole new world!<\/p>\n

When the moment came, my Twitter feed exploded with “WHITE SMOKE!!!!!” It was very exciting!<\/p>\n

There’s so much to say about our new Pope but what I’m most struck\u00a0with at the moment is his name–Francis.<\/p>\n

In the history of the Church, the name Francis is synonymous with evangelization. I believe the Pope’s choice of this name signals\u00a0his commitment to the New Evangelization. Although, I think it might turn out a bit different than the way it began.
\n<\/p>\n

The Pope chose Francis of Assisi<\/h2>\n

There was some confusion at first concerning which Francis the Pope meant. I\u00a0think originally everyone was thinking of the most famous Francis–St. Francis of Assisi. But then, some doubt set in.<\/p>\n

Was it St. Francis Xavier? After all, Pope Francis is a Jesuit. Or was it St. Francis de Sales?<\/p>\n

In an audience\u00a0with journalists a few days after the election, he revealed the story:<\/p>\n

During the election, I was seated next to…Cardinal Claudio Hummes: a good friend, a good friend! When things were looking dangerous, he encouraged me. And when the votes reached two thirds, there was the usual applause, because the Pope had been elected. And he gave me a hug and a kiss, and said: \u201cDon\u2019t forget the poor!\u201d<\/p>\n

And those words came to me: the poor, the poor. Then, right away, thinking of the poor, I thought of Francis of Assisi….That is how the name came into my heart: Francis of Assisi. For me, he is the man of poverty, the man of peace, the man who loves and protects creation; these days we do not have a very good relationship with creation, do we? He is the man who gives us this spirit of peace, the poor man \u2026 How I would like a Church which is poor and for the poor!<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The other Francises<\/h2>\n

St. Francis Xavier<\/h3>\n

St. Francis Xavier was probably the greatest overseas missionary of all time. One of the first Jesuits\u00a0and a personal friend of St. Ignatius Loyola, Xavier burned with uncommon zeal for souls fueled by his experience of the Spiritual Exercises.<\/p>\n

There are stories of Francis Xavier\u00a0going into villages in India, preaching the gospel, and then baptizing until he\u00a0couldn’t lift his arm any longer. His words were a fire backed up by miracles and an obvious infusion of the divine.<\/p>\n

Francis Xavier traveled as far as China and Japan to spread\u00a0the message of\u00a0Christ, but was martyred in the Philippines.<\/p>\n

St. Francis de Sales<\/h3>\n

In the early 1600’s, St. Francis de Sales was the bishop of Geneva…Switzerland. That was the stronghold of the Calvinists at the\u00a0height of\u00a0the Reformation!<\/p>\n

Francis de Sales preached constantly, and was extremely effective. He published and circulated tracts on the Catholic Faith, and also wrote numerous books on Catholic spirituality. He converted so many\u00a0people back to\u00a0the Church that his life was constantly in danger. He was not popular in certain Calvinist circles.<\/p>\n

Francis was the evangelist<\/h2>\n

But St. Francis of Assisi was the evangelist\u00a0because his influence changed\u00a0the course of\u00a0the Church.<\/p>\n

Wherever he went,\u00a0people converted back to\u00a0the Faith. Sometimes he\u00a0would just walk into town and people would want to follow him. His reputation was so\u00a0great he\u00a0didn’t even have to say anything. But he did…always!<\/p>\n

Francis was a magnificent preacher. He never prepared–just spoke what was in his heart. He preached so\u00a0beautifully,\u00a0people would cry hearing him talk of God’s love. He preached everywhere he went. He never stopped, and he exhorted his brothers to do the same. He even preached to\u00a0the birds…and they listened!<\/p>\n

His poverty of life, his radical trust in God, his complete transcendence of earthly needs, and the divine infusion of love in his soul radiated God to everyone. It changed them, and it changed\u00a0the way\u00a0people looked at the Catholic Faith.<\/p>\n

A Francis for\u00a0the New Evangelization<\/h2>\n

And now we have another Francis to lead\u00a0the Church.<\/p>\n

Much like St. Francis, he lives a radical, expressive faith. He shuns the privileges of his office for simplicity. He embodies the Church’s preferential option for the poor. He preaches off the cuff and doesn’t prepare his homilies or statements. And, he radiates a freshness, authenticity, and zeal for\u00a0Christ and the conversion of souls.<\/p>\n

It’s interesting that St. Francis’ work was like a new evangelization. He mostly ministered to a Catholic population in Northern Italy that had spiritually lost their way. Although, those that didn’t know God came to know him through Francis, his initial efforts were to invigorate\u00a0the Faith of those who had forgotten it. To re-propose the Faith in a new way and thus ignite hearts.<\/p>\n

This too is the mission of Pope Francis in the New Evangelization. I think he might usher in a different new evangelization than we all expected. Perhaps less focused on the intellectual and emphasizing, in the spirit of St. Francis, an adherence to the simplicity of the Gospel preached with love and backed up by a lived example of poverty and care for those on the margins.<\/p>\n

“Rebuild My Church,” God told St. Francis. “See how it’s lying in ruins\u00a0around you?” In many ways, our Church today is in ruins, and is in vital need of rebuilding.<\/p>\n

And\u00a0the Holy Spirit has chosen another Francis to take up\u00a0the stones and work. May God bless him in his work. And may we all pray for him and support him in this great task.<\/p>\n

What has been your favorite characteristic or quote from Pope Francis? Do you\u00a0think he’ll continue the work of the New Evangelization? Tell me your thoughts in\u00a0the comments.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I just want to say I’m thrilled\u00a0with our new Pope Francis! I mentioned that the last time I watched a papal election, it was with my pastor on a TV\u00a0outside my office. This time I shared the election with 1,900 eager, anxious Catholics on Twitter.\u00a0It’s a whole new world! When the moment came, my Twitter […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4512","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-evangelization-2","post-wrapper","thrv_wrapper"],"yoast_head":"\nWhat's in a Name? Francis Stands for Evangelist - Marc Cardaronella<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/marccardaronella.com\/blog\/2013\/03\/18\/pope-francis-evangelist\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What's in a Name? Francis Stands for Evangelist - Marc Cardaronella\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I just want to say I’m thrilled\u00a0with our new Pope Francis! I mentioned that the last time I watched a papal election, it was with my pastor on a TV\u00a0outside my office. This time I shared the election with 1,900 eager, anxious Catholics on Twitter.\u00a0It’s a whole new world! 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