The fragile Pope and the Mystery of Peter  

by Gianni Valente

Rome (Agenzia Fides) - Pope Francis is spending the 12th anniversary of his election as Successor of Peter and Bishop of Rome in a room at the Gemelli Hospital. Doctors announced his prognosis just a few days ago, which had been kept secret for a long time following his hospitalization on February 14.
In this Jubilee Year and in the midst of Lent, the unique moment experienced by the Bishop of Rome, suspended due to the unknowns of the course of his illness, breaks the usual media pattern of taking stock of the "pontificate" and reveals something deeper and more significant for the Church and its mission in the world.
Embracing his fragility and weaknesses, with his body exhausted and never shying away from the work to which his vocation and ministry have called him, Pope Francis repeats without needing to use words what he has always proclaimed: the Church cannot be saved by a poor man, but by the grace of Christ, who guides, heals, and sustains her with His grace and His Spirit.

The human frailties of the Bishops of Rome do not disfigure the face of the Church; on the contrary, they reveal the mystery that keeps her alive and makes her journey in history.
Christ's salvation embraces men and women just as they are, wounded by original sin, exposed to illness and falls, and this applies to everyone, beginning with the Successors of Peter. From Saint Peter to today, human frailty has never endangered the Church.

Pope Francis has never hidden his limitations, errors, and human frailty, like many of his predecessors. "My person counts for nothing. He is a brother who speaks to you, who has become a father by the will of Our Lord," affirmed Pope John XXIII in his famous Address to the Moon.
John Paul I, in his first meeting with the College of Cardinals after his election, expressed his desire that his "brother Cardinals" help "this poor Christ, Vicar of Christ."
For his part, Paul VI, in a meeting with the seminarians of Lombardy in December 1968, referred to the many who "expect resounding gestures, energetic and decisive interventions from the Pope," adding that "the Pope does not believe he has to follow any line other than that of trust in Jesus Christ, who cares for his Church more than anyone. He will be the one who calms the storm."
While his illness prevents him from carrying out many of the usual gestures of his mission, in these fragile days at the Gemelli, the ministry entrusted to Peter and his successors is manifested in its most intimate and fundamental essence. Despite his limitations, the Successor of Peter remains the Successor of Peter, even from his tenth-floor hospital room. Pope Francis is no less a Pope now that illness prevents him from meeting the crowds. The source of his ministry does not depend on the intensity of his public commitments.
The communion of prayer between the People of God scattered throughout the world and the Bishop of Rome in this time of trial has a deeper and more effective force than the signing of papal documents or appearances at Jubilee Events. Gestures such as his recent phone calls to the parish in Gaza, even from the hospital, to express concern for those who suffer most in the land of Jesus, are part of the "primary acts" of his Pontificate. Just like the appeals for peace and his words about war, also spoken during his hospitalization, which have providentially kept the Catholic Church away from the warlike whirlwinds that continue to tear the world apart, precisely when diplomatic paths for peace are once again opening.

The communion of prayer that has united the Bishop of Rome and the People of God during these weeks of hospitalization is a clear image of the profound bonds that sustain the Church and keep it alive throughout time. With an attention to real and substantial things, this experience seems to return everything to the simple request that Pope Francis has repeated incessantly for 12 years: "Pray for me, because I need it."
The Pope has asked and continues to ask to be sustained in times of trial. And the People of God have responded with prayer, entrusting him to Mary with joy and trust, without anguish.
The simple and common repetition of the prayers learned since childhood becomes a profound sign of communion of the multitudes, the Bishop of Rome, and the Church founded on the martyrdom of the Apostles Peter and Paul. This is what happened when the Apostle Peter "was kept in prison while the Church continued to pray for him to God" (Acts 12:5). Similarly, in the early centuries of Christianity, communion with the Church of Rome was also expressed and strengthened through the transmission and use of the same formulas of prayer.

By experiencing and witnessing this real communion with the Bishop of Rome through prayer, many have been able to better understand the true nature of his ministry. The experience of these weeks of prayer for Pope Francis has dispelled misconceptions that reduce him to the figure of a "CEO" of a multinational.
It has been demonstrated that the ministry of the Successor of Peter can be even more fruitful in the silence of shared prayer than with dozens of Motu Proprio and public appearances.

The Pope is not the "project manager" of the Church. Nor is he the organizer/catalyst of events. Corporate efficiency is not one of the indispensable features of the task entrusted to him. The essence of his task is to confirm his brothers and sisters in the faith of the Apostles.
(Agenzia Fides, 13/3/2025)

Share:

pope francis

---

---

catholic church

---

---