017-Catholic Pope Shockingly Upholds Catholic Doctrine; Thoughts on the Inaugural Mass

It was the other day that I woke up, being that I am six hours behind standard time for Pope Leo, to another major win for the aforementioned. His first ten days have contained nothing but wins, and his address to the Diplomatic Corps the on Friday was no exception. I would like to touch on that, as well as the breathtaking “Mass For the Inauguration of the Petrine Ministry,” which formally initiated Leo XIV’s reign as pope.

              But first, the address the other day. The headlines centered around the following quote. Leo stated that, “it is the responsibility of government leaders to work to build harmonious and peaceful civil societies. This can be achieved above all by investing in the family, founded upon the stable union between a man and a woman, ‘a small but genuine society, and prior to all civil society.’” The quote within the quote comes from the already well discussed Rerum Novarum, the famous encyclical written by the previous Leo—Leo XIII. Leo XIV went on to say that we most protect “especially the most frail and vulnerable, from the unborn to the elderly, from the sick to the unemployed, citizens and immigrants alike.”

              Now…I may be wrong, but this sounds a lot like a leader (THE Leader) in the Holy Roman and Apostolic Church to me. Progressives were citing these words in an act of dissatisfaction. Traditionalists were shouting in triumph over the pope speaking like a pope (in fairness to the late Pope Francis, he did nothing to contradict the remarks Leo made here). The bigger takeaway I had from his address was that a sound spiritual self and world starts local and/or singularly.

              The aforementioned quote was the key piece of his statement on justice, one of the three pillars discussed in his remarks. Peace, justice, and truth were the three pillars. In regards to peace, an already often reiterated concept in his pontificate, the key statement related to an inner peace and one we share with those in our immediate circle. He starts by quoting John. “My peace I give to you.” He defines peace as a “gift.” Leo goes on to say that “it is an active and demanding gift [however]. It engages and challenges each of us, regardless of our cultural background or religious affiliation, demanding first of all that we work on ourselves.” My interpretation of this statement and those words that followed is that we must first establish a strong inner peace before we can share that peace with others. When we do however, it can be a contagious peace; it can be like the Paschal Candle which lights the droves of other candles during the Easter Vigil. It starts singularly, however, and it is a call for all of us to do this. This can then influence world leaders and nations to implement policies which lead to broader peace, but it starts small. And world peace, he clearly articulates, is not sustainable without sharing an inner peace with each other (especially adversaries).

              We discussed the quote which went viral. It focused on the family and the most vulnerable. These are very local in nature.

              The last pillar is truth. Leo’s point here is that peace cannot be built without it. My favorite line in this part is “truth is not the affirmation of abstract and disembodied principles, but an encounter with the person of Christ himself, alive in the midst of the community of believers.” I summarize, but he basically says that this truth is the most effective source of unity. Again though, this is a singular focus for us to emphasize.

              The theme many are missing in his address is that for us to create a peaceful and just world centered around the truth of Christ, we must start in our immediate vicinities and let love flourish from there. This in some ways sounds like the hierarchy of love, in my opinion, but that is perhaps for a different day.

The inaugural mass…

              This mass occurred at 4:00AM my time. I, sure enough, caught the rerun but had to do it in segments. I started the recording and observed Pope Leo’s first ride on his popemobile, which appeared to be a Mercedes pickup truck. As mountains of people were running to achieve a memorable glimpse of the new pope, it occurred to me that this is a more daunting role than that of the U.S. president. This man is the representative of Christ for 1.4 billion Catholics, and a large number of other Christians still look to him for guidance (whether or not some want to admit to it is irrelevant). He is handling it like he was made for it though. He was indeed made for it. I get impressions similar to what I had with John Paul II from a style standpoint. This is a comparison I do not make lightly. Leo XIV—there is something special about him.

              Then, there was the procession from the basilica to the square, where the altar was set up for the hundreds of thousands in attendance. This procession started with an incensing of the tomb of St. Peter. Put that into perspective for a second. This man, Leo XIV, is the successor of the man Jesus himself gave the keys of the church to. He started his inaugural mass reflecting at Peter’s tomb. The Laudes Ragiae (Royal Praises) was chanted as he made his way to the masses. These chants, if you are lucky to get it or one similar stuck in your head early in the day, will put you in a good mood for the rest of it. The same can be said for the Litany of Saints, and it should be noted that The Vatican is taking great strides to teach Catholics how to chant with the pope in Latin during mass. This is an amazing gesture—it involves eight to ten minute tutorials on what the proper responses are in different parts of the mass.

              Anyway, I won’t dissect the homily too much, other than to mention one line. “I was chosen, without any merit, and now, with feat and trembling, I come to you as a brother, who desires to be the servant of your faith and your joy, walking with you on the path of God’s love, for he wants us all to be united in one family.” That, my friend, is what a humble servant leader sounds like.

              The gospel included a recitation in Latin as well as Greek. This was awesome and clearly a sign of respect to the eastern church.

              Cardinal Tagle presented Leo XIV with the Fisherman’s ring right before his homily. If you know me, you know I have some disagreements with His Eminence. That said, I think he is a delightful human, and the moment the two of them shared today was beautiful. As Leo XIV put on the ring, it moved him to tears. Real. Very real. None of us can begin to fathom the weight on his hand, and therefore, his shoulders in that moment. By so vulnerably sharing it, he made himself appear as a brother in the most spiritual sense.

              I’ll conclude by saying that the role of pope is arguably the most powerful position on earth. In terms of soft power diplomacy, I am not sure anyone carries a bigger influence. One can thumb a nose at this statement, but take a look at the dignitaries there. There was J.D. Vance, Marco Rubio, there were kings, presidents, other world renowned figures…and nobody hardly cared. The attention was on Pope Leo XIV and the Holy Roman Catholic Church. And as he gets acclimated, there is simply a powerful calm accompanying his every step—his every word, every blessing he gives, every wave, every smile. There is a gentleness about him which is unimaginably powerful, and I can only pray that the world finds a better sense of peace through that power.