Guest writer Mariana Ganea comments on the recent election of the new Pope and sees a bright future for the Catholic Church, with a Pope which appears more humane and closer to the masses.

While you are proclaiming peace with your lips, be careful to have it even more fully in your heart - Saint Francis of Assisi

The main breaking news all over the world last week was without any doubt the election of the new Pope (in picture). The media reacted as usual, making speculations which again made me sad. But what disturbed me more during these days were the bets and speculations on who was going to be the next Pope.  This media show seemed to be a reflection of the loss of our more spiritual and human parts.Many people were seriously interested in the event, particularly because of the unexpected announcement of Pope Benedict but, at the same time, because of worries about the future of the Catholic Church - which has been dragged into ugly scandals in recent years. Beyond all this, the election of the Head of the Catholic Church is much more than a media event - it is a bureaucratic and procedural act, as well as a spiritual and political event.

In a world tormented by crisis, the election of the new Pope has had a special importance. On March 13, 2013, the entire world, from the hundreds of thousands who stood in the rain in Saint Peter's Square, to the billions who watched on the TV channels, was astonished. The new Pope was not well-known and the name which he took as Pope, Francis, made people curious too. As I heard the news, the Saint Francis of Assisi’s icon appeared in my memory and made me remember about the wonderful middle age town, Saint Francis’ Church but, above all the Saint Francis' wise and warm words.

The new Pope, Francis I, as he said with warmth and modesty in his first appearance, came“from the end of World”, from Latin America, a huge catholic community, but with many and very difficult social, political, economical problems to solve. Pope Francis I is a simple man who initially learned chemistry, and went on to study philosophy, history and religion. So I'd expect him to have a balanced view about world, on spiritual and material levels, and a very good knowledge about poverty. As we all found, the Pope is a very simple man who used to travel by metro or bus and to cook by himself, so he knows how ordinary people live. This very human face of the new Pope and his compassion for poor people, especially now, in the world crisis period, could be a very good starting point. It seems as if the new Pope has a mind capable of understanding, a very good heart and, above all he seems to be an emphatic person. He seems to have the features needed to find solutions for our off the beam world.

The Pope’s affiliation to the Jesuit Church (founded in 16th century by Ignatius de Loyola) which is mostly defined as a spirituality of decision making, is also important in my opinion. And last, but not least, the name chosen by the new Pope, the name of Saint Francis of Assisi made many people think that a new era for the Catholic Church has begun, an era when the focus will be back on ordinary people, their lives and...souls.

In my opinion, the most important thing is the new Pope is a wise and empathic man with a warm heart, so we have a new hope for all over the World (not only Christians, I hope too) and this hope is about a new way to be human again. I hope that the Pope Francis I will “start by doing what’s necessary, then do what’s possible; and suddenly find himself doing the impossible” as hundreds years ago Saint Francis of Assisi wrote.

The Catholic Church is an influence on the spiritual side of many human beings and, at the same time, had and has a huge role in the international politics in the secular world. The Pope’s attitudes, acts, writings can have a tremendous impact on millions and millions of people and can have a very important impact on global politics too.

The last two Popes were, in spite of their very different ways, two international personalities who had made important contributions to the last 30 years - in the Catholic Church and in the rest of the World. From the very charismatic Polish Pope John Paul II (1978 – 2005), who made an important contribution to the breakdown of communism and who set up a new and profound basis for a dialogue between religions, to the German Pope Benedict XVI (2005 – 2013) who in his encyclicals continued Pope John Paul II's work and gave a new spiritual force to the Catholic believers. The Catholic Church could be said to creating balance in our world, which is so unbalanced on all sides, from the spiritual to the economic, financial, political and social.

By Mariana Ganea, Guest Writer

(photo source: The Holy See website)