Tale From The Crypt

Pope Francis continues to be frank and candid and gives us every reason to believe he is worthy of our respect and trust.  Who would ever have believed he would reveal his “dark” secret to the world through the press that continues to help us understand the man under the mitre.  He recently announced this sin that might be shocking to many but actually is just a remarkable revelation of just how human he is and how strong temptation can be.

Apparently, when he spoke in early March to pastors of Rome parishes, he revealed that as vicar general of the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires in the early 1990s, he paid his last respects to his 90-year old confessor lying in a church crypt.  After spreading flowers around this priest’s coffin, he noticed a rosary in the man’s hands, and he took it. 

He has carried that rosary/crucifix with him in his breast pocket since that time.  He still carries it as a reminder that before he speaks unkindly about someone, he must remember what he carries in his pocket, and how he got it – thievery.  

His public confession was given to those many priests as an example of the proper attitude during Lent: the need for penance and for priests to be ministers of mercy. 

Regarding his theft, what’s the difference between his removing the rosary or someone stealing a gold ring from a dead man’s fingers?  Not much, of course.  This is what makes his admission so astounding and, frankly, so welcomed.

It would be easy to rationalize the purloined cross.  After all, why leave such a meaningful rosary with the priest's remains for all eternity - out of sight with no living hands working the beads and saying comforting prayers?  Then again, aren't Red Sox caps and valuable signed baseballs enshrined in the tombs of devoted fans?

With the Pope as our example, I guess it’s time for us to pay our own visit to the confessional.   Monsignor Hoye, here we come.   We probably haven’t robbed any crypts lately, but our list of other sins warrants an airing and forgiveness.

Deacon David Pierce