VATICAN CITY
Vatican Radio
[with audio]
(Vatican Radio) Thursday marks the first anniversary of the election of Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina as Pope Francis. He was the first ever Pope from Latin America or as he himself jokingly remarked coming almost from “the end of the world.” The new Pope was also the first Jesuit Pope and the first to take the name of Francis. Over the past year, Pope Francis has won fans far and wide thanks to his human warmth and his obvious empathy with the poor and marginalized and he was named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year in 2013.
One of the world’s best-known commentators and authors on the Papacy and Vatican affairs is John Allen who works for the Boston Globe newspaper. So what is his take on this first year with Pope Francis? Susy Hodges spoke to him to find out.
Asked what he believes is the most significant aspect of Pope Francis’ first year in office, Allen says he believes “the most significant point is that he’s accomplished far more than most of us could have reasonably expected … both in terms of style and in terms of sustenance.” “He’s invigorated the Church at the grass roots level” but as Allen goes on to point out, Pope Francis has also notched up some more concrete achievements. He says these include the Pope’s “deep structural reforms such as his most recent decision to create a new Secretariat for the Economy in the Vatican to impose fiscal discipline.”
But could there be too many unrealistic expectations surrounding Pope Francis and what reforms he is planning? Allen agrees that in some quarters there are “over-heated” and unrealistic expectations, especially concerning doctrinal issues. “If there is an expectation that Pope Francis will radically change the doctrine of the Catholic Church, it is destined to be disappointed.”
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.