Dear Parishioners and Friends,
A gesture made by Pope Leo during his Mass of Intallation last Sunday which caught my attention (as well as that of the New York Times correspondent) was the moment after he had received the Fisherman’s Ring and he looked down at it for several moments. This photo captures the striking image of a man reflecting on the enormity of his call to shepherd the flock of Jesus Christ: all 1.36 billion of us!
It was a simple, spontaneous gesture, but one that captured my attention immediately. Pope Leo XIV, who apparently still signs his emails “Bob,” is a person who is capable of experiencing deep feelings and emotions, and isn’t afraid to let us see them. He doesn’t hide what he is feeling at the moment, and there have been numerous moments since his first appearance on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica when he showed the depth of his feelings.
I think we have a tendency to think of popes as no longer mere mortals, but persons set apart and somehow untouched by earthly things. However, we know that Peter himself, whose successor Pope Leo XIV is, was very much a mortal person with very human thoughts, feelings and actions.
This is an excerpt from the liturgical booklet from the “Eucharistic Celebration of the Initiation of the Petrine Ministry of the Bishop of Rome”:
The ring, already a liturgical New Testament element, has been among the insignia peculiar to the Bishop since the first millennium. The one given to the new Pope today, called the Fisherman’s Ring and bearing an image of St. Peter with the keys and the net, has the particular meaning of the ring that authenticates the faith and symbolizes the duty entrusted to Peter of confirming the brethren. It is called the “Fisherman’s” ring, because Peter is the fisherman Apostle. Having believed in Jesus’ word, he dragged the nets containing the miraculous catch of fish from the boat to the lakeshore. Today too the Church and the successors of the Apostles are told to put out into the deep sea of history and to let down the nets, so as to win men and women over to the Gospel – to God, to Christ, to true life.
In his homily, Pope Leo under-scored Peter’s call by Jesus to shepherd the flock entrusted to him. Pope Leo said, “Peter is thus entrusted with the task of ‘loving more’ and giving his life for the flock. The ministry of Peter is distinguished precisely by this self-sacrificing love, because the Church of Rome presides in charity and its true authority is the charity of Christ. It is never a question of capturing others by force, by religious propaganda, or by means of power. Instead, it is always and only a question of loving as Jesus did.”
Reflecting on his new role as shepherd of the flock of Christ, Pope Leo said that he was “called through … baptism to build God’s house in fraternal communion, in the harmony of the Spirit, in the coexistence of diversity. In the words of St. Augustine: ‘The Church consists of all those who are in harmony with their brothers and sisters and who love their neighbor.’”
This is a significant point to remember: that we are called to unity within our diversity, and to love one another even when we might disagree. As the Holy Father said: “Brothers and sisters, I would like that our first great desire be for a united Church, a sign of unity and communion, which becomes a leaven for a reconciled world.”
I pray that Pope Leo will guide us with the wisdom and humility he has already shown us; as a fellow Christian striving to live the Gospel with faith, hope, and love.
Fr. Tim Shreenan, O.F.M.
Pastor