UNITED STATES
National Catholic Reporter
by Jamie Manson | Mar. 15, 2013
I suppose my assessment of the new pope is probably similar to those who have been reading the mainstream news since Wednesday night’s historic election.
I have been touched by Francis’ clear love of the poor and the images of his bathing the feet of sick children and AIDS patients. I am troubled by his alleged failure stand up with Argentine dictators during the “Dirty War” and his harmful words about LGBT families. I am worried by reports that he was unpopular among his brother Jesuits because of his unfavorable views of base communities and liberation theology.
But what most piqued my interest about Pope Francis is his strong tie to a movement called Comunione e Liberazione, or Communion and Liberation (CL).
As John Allen reported in the days before Jorge Mario Bergoglio became Francis, the Argentine cardinal “became close to the Comunione e Liberazione movement” over the years, “sometimes speaking at its massive annual gathering in Rimini, Italy.” Allen also notes Bergoglio presented the books of CL’s founder, Fr. Luigi Giussani, at literary fairs in Argentina. (It should be noted that Cardinal Angelo Scola, widely considered the conclave’s front-runner, is also a longtime CL collaborator.)
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