Dear Francis, It has been over five years since we first met in Rome. I’ve cherished our conversation from that day — your loving comments about my work (and admonishing me that I “need to do more”); your agreement with me that the Church must end the treatment of women as second class citizens; me encouraging you to “keep putting the poor first and foremost.” On that last point I asked if what I had heard was correct, “that you said you believed capitalism to be a ‘sin’.”
Oh dearest Michael as a cradle Italian Catholic I love all you wrote to our dear Francis. So let me just say if you think he can say most of that and not have his espresso poisoned then hooray. He can’t. He would be gone pretty quickly. He is doing what he can in baby steps. The Synod though not forthcoming enough in reforms is already being narrowed down by the naysayers. And the Virgin Birth well that is dogma and well that really will get heads rolling. And enough it was the Romans not Italians that were in charge of the territories! Unification didn’t happen till 1800s. HAHA Thank you for your wonderful work for workers. And thank God for the UAW My immigrant parents who worked the assembly line would be destitute if not for the health benefits as retirees. My Dad proudly never ever crossed a picket line. Proud union family.
Thank you, Michael, more than I can say. If you could run for Pope, I would surely vote for you. I cried as I read what you wrote imagining that the Church might have been the way you described when I was growing up in the 50’s and going to a Catholic school in an Irish Catholic neighborhood. And I was named Mary after the Blessed Virgin and that is a hard act to follow. There was so much that I loved about the Catholic faith so when I knew I would have to divorce it to maintain my sanity, it took me a long time until it got to the point where going to hell seemed better than carrying on, like my grandmothers and my mother, who had one baby after another that they couldn’t afford, physically, mentally, or financially. If I could describe in one word, what would define my family, I would say sadness. I am a recovering Catholic, and like an alcoholic, I know I will always be recovering. There is no cure. I was brainwashed and guilty and ashamed and anxious so often, it just became part of who I was and still am. I am 80 years old now and managed over the years to find a path that I could walk on and develop my spirituality and my relationship with God. There is only one person left in my family who is still a Catholic. I had four brothers, three who turned to alcohol, and one to meditation to cope. Sometimes I think about growing up Catholic and the high masses and the incense, and the chanting, and the Latin, and the Nativity scenes, and midnight Mass, and the Stations of the Cross, the things that seemed so sacred to me, and when I divorced the church, I had to leave all that behind, along with all the rest I had to leave behind so I could start to try to learn how to breathe again. Thank you again for being able to articulate that which I could never put into words. Reading what you wrote was very healing for me, and I am sure it must have touched others very deeply.
Hello Michael, my y number one plea to Pope Francis would be that he supports birth control because all the poor babies being born need to be fed and the human race is overpopulating the planet. Just look at global warming. Also I would like the pope to side with democracy and western civilization in the Ukrainian war and not wave the White flag to surrender to
A dictatorship in Russia.
Us non-religious types, think it is crazy for humans to overpopulate and then hope the rich greedy religious psychopaths feed them. The rich will feed them all right, to the lions if they are lucky and don't starve or die of disease.
"Pope Saint Francis" is what I have called him from the start. I am so glad you had the opportunity to meet him, and he to meet you and encourage you to continue your important work. I left the church in highschool, but still believe in the Power of Prayer. Sending a few your way, and to Pope Saint Francis, and to President Joe Biden. Thank You. Peace.
It would be crossing a line in the sand, but the Catholic church is a 1000 years behind from the start they have been involved in politics.
The bishops would be against him to say such blasphemy. It should be for no religious reason that church, government, or anyone tell a woman what to do.
I've read some of the very thoughtful comments that fellow readers have shared. I was so touched by your gracious letter to Pope Francis and your audacious suggestions that would totally rock the Catholic world! I so agree with your comments and would add the vital importance of advocating for birth control (as Bob Johnson suggested) to reduce the overwhelming population of people in poverty. So many people that our planet cannot support. Babies are a blessing when they can be fed and live in safety after birth. I'm not a "recovering Catholic" as are many of those who shared your feelings, but I so admire Pope Francis and pray for his health. He has been the only Pope during my lifetime who has responded sensibly to at least some of the serious problems we face in this disfunctional world. Thank you for putting these thoughts out into the universe.
Thank you for this, as always. I am not a Catholic and have looked with horror on many of the consequences of stances taken by that particular religion and those who led it, especially the various Popes. Pope Francis made me think that even the Catholic church might be able to change after all these centuries of harm. I truly love the man--he is an absolute good. You can see it in his face.
I love you and your heart and mind Michael! You are a hero and I am so grateful for your willingness and wisdom to keep sending messages. Your letter to Pope Francis is inspirational. 🍃🌺🍃🙏🏻
Wow. Just wow. You put in writing so much of what I've been thinking for so long but have been afraid to say out loud. I could not agree more with ALL of what you'd like the Pope to say. Christianity (and other mainstream religions) are 100% misogynistic (it's all about men being in power), bigoted and full of hate for the other. And the hocus-pocus. OMG!! Seriously. The fact that they duped SOOOO many people in believing a 'virginal birth' was real just boggles my mind. I have to fight daily to not scream at the world and ask "what are you thinking". Thank you dear sir for saying it all out loud. These are all issues that must be worked on and I'm afraid I'll not see any of these resolved in my lifetime but I can hope that sanity will prevail in the future. (a little harder now that people like Trump and Poilieve, and those who support them, are trying to drag us back to the dark ages. Keep telling it like it is Michael. I couldn't love you more than I do right now brother. I'd like to just mention, too, that I'm Canadian, but I'm very interested and invested in everything that is happening in the world. Thanks again!!
I recently read on some click-bait info-blurb link that the very first coin-operated vending machine ever invented was centuries ago, and it dispensed Holy Water.
And yes, the ancient Romans were what the Nazis really wanted to be. It wouldn't even surprise me if the truth were that Jesus was gay, which was really why he was turned over to the Gestapo.
However, don't expect that movie at your local kino.
One can speculate about the real truth, but it is lost. We do like to pretend that we know what is what, because it feels better.
Oh dearest Michael as a cradle Italian Catholic I love all you wrote to our dear Francis. So let me just say if you think he can say most of that and not have his espresso poisoned then hooray. He can’t. He would be gone pretty quickly. He is doing what he can in baby steps. The Synod though not forthcoming enough in reforms is already being narrowed down by the naysayers. And the Virgin Birth well that is dogma and well that really will get heads rolling. And enough it was the Romans not Italians that were in charge of the territories! Unification didn’t happen till 1800s. HAHA Thank you for your wonderful work for workers. And thank God for the UAW My immigrant parents who worked the assembly line would be destitute if not for the health benefits as retirees. My Dad proudly never ever crossed a picket line. Proud union family.
Thank you, Michael, more than I can say. If you could run for Pope, I would surely vote for you. I cried as I read what you wrote imagining that the Church might have been the way you described when I was growing up in the 50’s and going to a Catholic school in an Irish Catholic neighborhood. And I was named Mary after the Blessed Virgin and that is a hard act to follow. There was so much that I loved about the Catholic faith so when I knew I would have to divorce it to maintain my sanity, it took me a long time until it got to the point where going to hell seemed better than carrying on, like my grandmothers and my mother, who had one baby after another that they couldn’t afford, physically, mentally, or financially. If I could describe in one word, what would define my family, I would say sadness. I am a recovering Catholic, and like an alcoholic, I know I will always be recovering. There is no cure. I was brainwashed and guilty and ashamed and anxious so often, it just became part of who I was and still am. I am 80 years old now and managed over the years to find a path that I could walk on and develop my spirituality and my relationship with God. There is only one person left in my family who is still a Catholic. I had four brothers, three who turned to alcohol, and one to meditation to cope. Sometimes I think about growing up Catholic and the high masses and the incense, and the chanting, and the Latin, and the Nativity scenes, and midnight Mass, and the Stations of the Cross, the things that seemed so sacred to me, and when I divorced the church, I had to leave all that behind, along with all the rest I had to leave behind so I could start to try to learn how to breathe again. Thank you again for being able to articulate that which I could never put into words. Reading what you wrote was very healing for me, and I am sure it must have touched others very deeply.
Hello Michael, my y number one plea to Pope Francis would be that he supports birth control because all the poor babies being born need to be fed and the human race is overpopulating the planet. Just look at global warming. Also I would like the pope to side with democracy and western civilization in the Ukrainian war and not wave the White flag to surrender to
A dictatorship in Russia.
Us non-religious types, think it is crazy for humans to overpopulate and then hope the rich greedy religious psychopaths feed them. The rich will feed them all right, to the lions if they are lucky and don't starve or die of disease.
Good for you, Mike. Well thought out and very well spoken; speaking truth to power in this case aint easy but you did it.
This is a most beautiful and heartfelt letter to the best Pope ever. I’m crying at the thought of his future passing.
"Pope Saint Francis" is what I have called him from the start. I am so glad you had the opportunity to meet him, and he to meet you and encourage you to continue your important work. I left the church in highschool, but still believe in the Power of Prayer. Sending a few your way, and to Pope Saint Francis, and to President Joe Biden. Thank You. Peace.
It would be crossing a line in the sand, but the Catholic church is a 1000 years behind from the start they have been involved in politics.
The bishops would be against him to say such blasphemy. It should be for no religious reason that church, government, or anyone tell a woman what to do.
Thank you Michael. Heartfelt. On target. Buona pasqua.
Dear Michael,
I've read some of the very thoughtful comments that fellow readers have shared. I was so touched by your gracious letter to Pope Francis and your audacious suggestions that would totally rock the Catholic world! I so agree with your comments and would add the vital importance of advocating for birth control (as Bob Johnson suggested) to reduce the overwhelming population of people in poverty. So many people that our planet cannot support. Babies are a blessing when they can be fed and live in safety after birth. I'm not a "recovering Catholic" as are many of those who shared your feelings, but I so admire Pope Francis and pray for his health. He has been the only Pope during my lifetime who has responded sensibly to at least some of the serious problems we face in this disfunctional world. Thank you for putting these thoughts out into the universe.
Thank you for this, as always. I am not a Catholic and have looked with horror on many of the consequences of stances taken by that particular religion and those who led it, especially the various Popes. Pope Francis made me think that even the Catholic church might be able to change after all these centuries of harm. I truly love the man--he is an absolute good. You can see it in his face.
I love you and your heart and mind Michael! You are a hero and I am so grateful for your willingness and wisdom to keep sending messages. Your letter to Pope Francis is inspirational. 🍃🌺🍃🙏🏻
Wow. Just wow. You put in writing so much of what I've been thinking for so long but have been afraid to say out loud. I could not agree more with ALL of what you'd like the Pope to say. Christianity (and other mainstream religions) are 100% misogynistic (it's all about men being in power), bigoted and full of hate for the other. And the hocus-pocus. OMG!! Seriously. The fact that they duped SOOOO many people in believing a 'virginal birth' was real just boggles my mind. I have to fight daily to not scream at the world and ask "what are you thinking". Thank you dear sir for saying it all out loud. These are all issues that must be worked on and I'm afraid I'll not see any of these resolved in my lifetime but I can hope that sanity will prevail in the future. (a little harder now that people like Trump and Poilieve, and those who support them, are trying to drag us back to the dark ages. Keep telling it like it is Michael. I couldn't love you more than I do right now brother. I'd like to just mention, too, that I'm Canadian, but I'm very interested and invested in everything that is happening in the world. Thanks again!!
Well said. At least half the problems in the world have been caused for centuries by what men chose to put in God’s mouth in the name of religion.
What a beautiful essay. ❤️
I recently read on some click-bait info-blurb link that the very first coin-operated vending machine ever invented was centuries ago, and it dispensed Holy Water.
And yes, the ancient Romans were what the Nazis really wanted to be. It wouldn't even surprise me if the truth were that Jesus was gay, which was really why he was turned over to the Gestapo.
However, don't expect that movie at your local kino.
One can speculate about the real truth, but it is lost. We do like to pretend that we know what is what, because it feels better.
Alas.
So when's the next movie?