Pope Francis and a new vision of Catholic reform

From the very first moment of his unexpected election as Pope Francis, Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio of Argentina has embraced a series of small departures from established tradition.

He took his papal name from a great nonconforming saint of the Middle Ages — and one that no other pope in the history of the Roman Catholic Church has taken. He then refused to stand on an elevated platform that would separate him from his “brother cardinals,” and asked the people of Rome to bless him rather than receive his blessing. He even insisted on returning to his hotel to settle his account (as though his credit were in any doubt).

Everyone who knew Bergoglio saw in him an unconventional and even unpredictable figure

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Comments

Geremia said…
Ahh… when's the misconception that he asked the Romans to bless him going to end? He specifically asked them to pray to God that He bless him.
Sixupman said…
"From the very first moment of his unexpected election .......... ".

I wonder! I have a definite sense that the said "election" was engineered outside the Conclave.