Chapel dedicated to Pope (St) Francis

Express Canonization with QR Code at Buenos Aires Cathedral

The Rector of Buenos Aires Cathedral has announced that a "perpetual memorial" will be installed in honor of Pope Francis in a chapel of the Buenos Aires cathedral. He said this at the end of a Mass marking the first month of his death. The chosen chapel is the baptismal chapel of Saints Peter and Paul, which will be refurbished to forever remember the "People's Pope," as the local clergy now shamelessly call him. There will be a collection box for donations and, of course, a QR code for transfers via Mercado Pago. Canonization, as you can see, no longer awaits Roman processes: it is done by subscription.

We are not talking about a commemorative plaque, nor a discreet historical reminder. This is a permanent space within a cathedral, with the explicit purpose of perpetual homage. That is to say: a sort of civil altar where the people—says the rector—can pay tribute to someone they already consider almost a saint. Whether there are relics or not is not mentioned, but that's beside the point. The gesture conveys the same thing: the ecclesial elevation of a figure the Church has not yet recognized even as venerable.

And the Church, although it may not always seem so, has rules. Wise rules that prevent affection—legitimate and understandable—from turning into doctrinal confusion. No one is worshipped publicly without having been judged by the Church. And even less so in a cathedral chapel. John Paul II didn't have that in Krakow. Benedict XVI didn't have that in Bavaria. But in Buenos Aires, they've already decided that yes: Francis is the saint of the people, period. And if a bank account needs to be set up, it's set up.

This has nothing to do with affection for a Pope. Not even with his possible holiness. It has to do with respect for the times of the Church and the faith of the common people, who run the risk of being manipulated by sentimentality, pious marketing, and the growing habit of prematurely canonizing those who have been powerful, in the media, or simply popular.

The Church canonizes when there is proof of holiness, miracles, and heroic virtue. And it does so after long processes. The rest is propaganda. And in this case, very inelegant.

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