As we welcome a new Roman pontiff, we turn to some more images of Ss. Peter and Paul, the great patrons of Rome are worth recalling to mind. Their feast day is approaching on June 29.
(The arms shown between them are arguably the most famous and distinctive arms in all of baroque Rome; they are the arms of the Barberini family and the Barberini pope, Urban VIII). Notice the honey bees on the coat of arms.
Approaching the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, you’ll start to hear a lot of really bad and stupid arguments. One is that Constantine originally supported the Athanasian line of thought against the Arian line and that’s why the Council decided the way they did. Here’s the the thing: no! And here’s why –
“The story of 1st Nicaea and (especially) its aftermath is not just not what e.g. Dan Brown claimed: it’s literally the opposite.
Constantine didn’t interfere at the council on behalf of what is now orthodoxy. If anything, he was sympathetic to Arianism, but mainly he was against a creed that would exclude the Arians: he wanted everyone to stop *fussing*. He was complicated, but *probably* at least on many levels wanted a Christianity that was a syncretistic popular religion to tie together the empire and provide continuity with paganism, an easy fuzzy-minded baptism of Sol Invictus.
That is what he didn’t get.
He *tried* to interfere theologically at one point after the council: he commanded Athanasius to rescind Alexander’s anathematization of Arius.
Athanasius responded thusly: “What concern had the emperor with it? When did a decision of the Church receive its authority from the emperor? Or rather, when was his decree even recognized? There have been many [local] councils in times past, and many decrees made by the Church; but never did the fathers seek the consent of the emperor for them, not did the emperor busy himself in the affairs of the Church….The Apostle Paul had friends among those who belonged to the house of Caesar, and in the writing to the Philipians he sent greetings from them: but never did he take them as associates in his judgment”.
In other words, Constantine was, for at least part of his life, *really trying* to be in a Dan Brown novel. Like, his level best. Not the part about deciding what books were in the Bible, but the part about patching together an imperially helpful compromise syncretistic religion. That religion would have been Arianism: a platonic high God with a Jesus who was a sort of highest in the created order Sol Invictus divine son. Who one was allowed to worship. This religion would have been amenable to all kinds of both gnostic and demi-pagan developments: you could bolt on an emanation or two; old gods could sneak back in as Arian “saints” to be worshiped, because if you could worship a created being in Jesus, why not worship other lesser created beings? As a treat?
But that is *precisely* what was rejected at & after Nicaea.
One God. Christ Jesus, the man, is God. Consubstantial with the Father. There is no time when He was not.
All the saints who we honor, Mary herself, are simply not consubstantial with the Father. That is not and has never been orthodoxy. And this has always been entirely public and clear. The possibility of a paganized and syncretized religion presented itself, then: as long after the death of the last apostle as we are after the American Revolutionary War.
It tried its best. It looked very much like it was going to win.
Of course that religion would have lost Christianity’s Judaism, but it might have been a lot more helpful empire-building wise. Super easy to skootch any pagans you run into in to the Arian “Church”.
But what Athanasius (and, in the end, all but two of the 318 bishops who attended) said to Constantine and Arius was this: Yes I see what you mean, that would be a more straightforward religion and make things easier politically. But that is not what the apostles taught. That is a new thing. And we say no.
God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten not made, ὁμοούσιον τῷ Πατρί”
– Sussanah Black Roberts, Editor of Plough Quarterly and Mere Orthodoxy
Pope Leo XIV, during his first Regina Coeli, on the Good Shepherd Sunday and the day of prayer for vocations, tells young people: “Do not be afraid” to accept the proposal from the Church!
And days after the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe, Pope Leo XIV repeats, “No more war!” He called for an authentic, true and lasting peace in Ukraine, an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and for humanitarian aid to be allowed in and all Israeli hostages freed.
“I chose to take the name Leo XIV. There are different reasons for this, but mainly because Pope Leo XIII in his historic Encyclical Rerum Novarum addressed the social question in the context of the first great industrial revolution. In our own day, the Church offers to everyone the treasury of her social teaching in response to another industrial revolution and to developments in the field of artificial intelligence that pose new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice and labour…” (Address to the Cardinals 10 May 2025)
We watch and wait and expect.
The election of a Roman Pontiff, alternatively titled Supreme Pontiff, the Bishop of Rome, or the Pope. There are several titles afforded to the holder of the office but this unimportant right now. We know the one elected is the successor to St. Peter, not successor to the previous popes. Francis was the vicar of Christ, successor to St. Peter, not the successor to Pope Benedict XVI.
Catholic ecclesiology teaches us that we are to be attentive to the election of the new Roman Pontiff through prayer to the Holy Spirit. It is not a political caucus. It is not a time to arrange for someone’s election. So that’s what we do –we wait patiently and prayerfully following the line: Thy will be done. We sit in prayerful expectation and not fall prey to the media prognostications.
The image of the Book of the Gospels is opened to Matthew 4, when Jesus calls his first disciples. Hands are being placed on the spot where Jesus calls his first follower: “Simon, who is called Peter.”
Come Holy Spirit, come through Mary.
Native nutmegger, Father David Tracy, 86, died on Tuesday, April 29, the feast of St. Catherine of Siena. He was a priest of the Diocese of Bridgeport, author, and professor. Father David is consider by many –and rightly so– to be an eminent Catholic theologian and distinguished professor at the University of Chicago. One of the groups Father David was a part of was Chicago’s Lumen Christi Institute, which he played a key role in its mission. As the director of the Institute said, “Fr. Tracy shaped the culture of the Institute, as he modeled intellectual friendship and the pursuit of truth across divisions.”
Kenneth Woodward writes:
David Tracy was not just a great theologian, though he was easily the most influential Catholic fundamental theologian of his era. He was that far more capacious figure, a great Christian humanist. The range of his reading matched the range of his thought and interest. He knew classical literature, much of medieval literature and a great deal of modern literature. And sociology. And science. In fact, these insights influenced many of his later essays and led him to the concept of “fragments,” which figures so importantly in his late essays. But he was also and always a priest nourished by both the celebrating and the receiving of the sacraments. He knew the hypocrisies that can infest both the church and the academy but it didn’t matter: he was thoroughly at home in both. Oh, and he wrote some of the longest, fruitful and stand-alone interesting footnotes of any writer I know.
A very interesting 2019 interview can be read here.
Having two graduate degrees in Theology I’ve read Fr David’s writing. I would say without exaggeration that Father David and Cardinal Avery Dulles are considered “deans of Catholic Theology in the USA.”
May Father David Tracy memory be eternal.
St. Augustine, pray for us.
The Homily of Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re for the funeral of Pope Francis.
In this majestic Saint Peter’s Square, where Pope Francis celebrated the Eucharist so many times and presided over great gatherings over the past twelve years, we are gathered with sad hearts in prayer around his mortal remains. Yet, we are sustained by the certainty of faith, which assures us that human existence does not end in the tomb, but in the Father’s house, in a life of happiness that will know no end.
On behalf of the College of Cardinals, I cordially thank all of you for your presence. With deep emotion, I extend respectful greetings and heartfelt thanks to the Heads of State, Heads of Government and Official Delegations who have come from many countries to express their affection, veneration and esteem for our late Holy Father.
The outpouring of affection that we have witnessed in recent days following his passing from this earth into eternity tells us how much the profound pontificate of Pope Francis touched minds and hearts.
The final image we have of him, which will remain etched in our memory, is that of last Sunday, Easter Sunday, when Pope Francis, despite his serious health problems, wanted to give us his blessing from the balcony of Saint Peter’s Basilica. He then came down to this Square to greet the large crowd gathered for the Easter Mass while riding in the open-top Popemobile.
With our prayers, we now entrust the soul of our beloved Pontiff to God, that he may grant him eternal happiness in the bright and glorious gaze of his immense love.
We are enlightened and guided by the passage of the Gospel, in which the very voice of Christ resounded, asking the first of the Apostles: “Peter, do you love me more than these?” Peter’s answer was prompt and sincere: “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you!” Jesus then entrusted him with the great mission: “Feed my sheep.” This will be the constant task of Peter and his successors, a service of love in the footsteps of Christ, our Master and Lord, who “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mk 10:45).
Despite his frailty and suffering towards the end, Pope Francis chose to follow this path of self-giving until the last day of his earthly life. He followed in the footsteps of his Lord, the Good Shepherd, who loved his sheep to the point of giving his life for them. And he did so with strength and serenity, close to his flock, the Church of God, mindful of the words of Jesus quoted by the Apostle Paul: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).
When Cardinal Bergoglio was elected by the Conclave on 13 March 2013 to succeed Pope Benedict XVI, he already had many years of experience in religious life in the Society of Jesus and, above all, was enriched by twenty-one years of pastoral ministry in the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, first as Auxiliary, then as Coadjutor and, above all, as Archbishop.
The decision to take the name Francis immediately appeared to indicate the pastoral plan and style on which he wanted to base his pontificate, seeking inspiration from the spirit of Saint Francis of Assisi.
He maintained his temperament and form of pastoral leadership, and through his resolute personality, immediately made his mark on the governance of the Church. He established direct contact with individuals and peoples, eager to be close to everyone, with a marked attention to those in difficulty, giving himself without measure, especially to the marginalised, the least among us. He was a Pope among the people, with an open heart towards everyone. He was also a Pope attentive to the signs of the times and what the Holy Spirit was awakening in the Church.
With his characteristic vocabulary and language, rich in images and metaphors, he always sought to shed light on the problems of our time with the wisdom of the Gospel. He did so by offering a response guided by the light of faith and encouraging us to live as Christians amid the challenges and contradictions in recent years, which he loved to describe as an “epochal change.”
He had great spontaneity and an informal way of addressing everyone, even those far from the Church.
Rich in human warmth and deeply sensitive to today’s challenges, Pope Francis truly shared the anxieties, sufferings and hopes of this time of globalisation. He gave of himself by comforting and encouraging us with a message capable of reaching people’s hearts in a direct and immediate way.
His charisma of welcome and listening, combined with a manner of behaviour in keeping with today’s sensitivities, touched hearts and sought to reawaken moral and spiritual sensibilities.
Evangelisation was the guiding principle of his pontificate. With a clear missionary vision, he spread the joy of the Gospel, which was the title of his first Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii gaudium. It is a joy that fills the hearts of all those who entrust themselves to God with confidence and hope.
The guiding thread of his mission was also the conviction that the Church is a home for all, a home with its doors always open. He often used the image of the Church as a “field hospital” after a battle in which many were wounded; a Church determined to take care of the problems of people and the great anxieties that tear the contemporary world apart; a Church capable of bending down to every person, regardless of their beliefs or condition, and healing their wounds.
His gestures and exhortations in favour of refugees and displaced persons are countless. His insistence on working on behalf of the poor was constant.
It is significant that Pope Francis’ first journey was to Lampedusa, an island that symbolises the tragedy of emigration, with thousands of people drowning at sea. In the same vein was his trip to Lesbos, together with the Ecumenical Patriarch and the Archbishop of Athens, as well as the celebration of a Mass on the border between Mexico and the United States during his journey to Mexico.
Of his 47 arduous Apostolic Journeys, the one to Iraq in 2021, defying every risk, will remain particularly memorable. That difficult Apostolic Journey was a balm on the open wounds of the Iraqi people, who had suffered so much from the inhuman actions of ISIS. It was also an important trip for interreligious dialogue, another significant dimension of his pastoral work. With his 2024 Apostolic Journey to four countries in Asia-Oceania, the Pope reached “the most peripheral periphery of the world.”
Pope Francis always placed the Gospel of mercy at the centre, repeatedly emphasising that God never tires of forgiving us. He always forgives, whatever the situation might be of the person who asks for forgiveness and returns to the right path.
He called for the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy in order to highlight that mercy is “the heart of the Gospel.”
Mercy and the joy of the Gospel are two key words for Pope Francis.
In contrast to what he called “the culture of waste,” he spoke of the culture of encounter and solidarity. The theme of fraternity ran through his entire pontificate with vibrant tones. In his Encyclical Letter Fratelli tutti, he wanted to revive a worldwide aspiration to fraternity, because we are all children of the same Father who is in heaven. He often forcefully reminded us that we all belong to the same human family.
In 2019, during his trip to the United Arab Emirates, Pope Francis signed A Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together, recalling the common fatherhood of God.
Addressing men and women throughout the world, in his Encyclical Letter Laudato si’ he drew attention to our duties and shared responsibility for our common home, stating, “No one is saved alone.”
Faced with the raging wars of recent years, with their inhuman horrors and countless deaths and destruction, Pope Francis incessantly raised his voice imploring peace and calling for reason and honest negotiation to find possible solutions. War, he said, results in the death of people and the destruction of homes, hospitals and schools. War always leaves the world worse than it was before: it is always a painful and tragic defeat for everyone.
“Build bridges, not walls” was an exhortation he repeated many times, and his service of faith as Successor of the Apostle Peter always was linked to the service of humanity in all its dimensions.
Spiritually united with all of Christianity, we are here in large numbers to pray for Pope Francis, that God may welcome him into the immensity of his love.
Pope Francis used to conclude his speeches and meetings by saying, “Do not forget to pray for me.”
Dear Pope Francis, we now ask you to pray for us. May you bless the Church, bless Rome, and bless the whole world from heaven as you did last Sunday from the balcony of this Basilica in a final embrace with all the people of God, but also embrace humanity that seeks the truth with a sincere heart and holds high the torch of hope.
The Eastern Catholic patriarchs sing the Panikhida prayers at Pope Francis’s funeral. The heads of the Eastern Catholic Churches were also present at Pope Benedict’s, St John Paul II’s and St John XXIII’s funeral.
The presence of Eastern Christianity –Catholic and Orthodox– demonstrates eloquently the universality and diversity of the Universal Church, a church breathing with both lungs.
The youngest cardinals at the Funeral of Pope Francis:
Left is Cardinal Américo Aguiar, Portugal, 51; Cardinal Mykola Bychok CSsR, Melbourne, 45; on the right is Cardinal Giorgio Marengo, IMC, Mongolia, 50.
Cardinal Mykola Bychok is the Eparch of the Ukrainian eparchy, Melbourne, Australia.
All three will join the other cardinals under the age of 80 in the Sistine Chapel for the Conclave to elect the next Roman Pontiff, the Bishop of Rome, Patriarch of the West.
Photo courtesy of Cardinal Mykola Bychok.
