10/04/2023
After the release of the documentary “Amen, Francis responds”, on April 5 on Disney +, In the midst of Holy Week, the pontiff’s statements have generated all kinds of reactions not only among parishioners of the Catholic Church, but also among those who recognize him as one of the most important leaders in the world.
In the film, the Supreme Pontiff spoke with ten young people on various topics, including racism, immigration, sex, masturbation, abortion, the use of applications such as Tinder, sexual abuse committed by members of the Church and his income as a pope.
Francisco spoke with the naturalness and confidence that characterize him, clarifying that he is not paid for the functions he performs, but that if he needs money or to buy clothes, for example, he asks the Holy See.
“When I need money to buy shoes, I go and ask for it, but I don’t have a salary. But that doesn’t worry me because I can eat for free”explained the Pope, who also said that his “way of life is quite modest, that of a mid-level employee.”
Words that might be interpreted as saying that the holy father is not very interested in money and that it is not so important for his daily life. Of course, he expressed that Although the Church he represents collects a lot of resources worldwide, these are for the development of missionary work, in addition to paying for the operation of the Vatican.
The money that the highest organization of the Catholic Church usually receivesthrough the diocese, provision of services, visits to the Holy See, and donations, is usually intended for support of the Clergy, the payment of their collaborators –priests, religious, civil personnel, Swiss Guard–, in addition to the construction and maintenance of real estate, such as temples and parishes, and charitable, pastoral and social promotion works.
It is believed that the patrimony of the Catholic Church is between $10,000 and $15,000 million dollars, although the exact data remains a complete mystery, since this information is not in the public domain.
Therefore, Pope Francis, since he is in charge, has decided to implement new ways of managing resources, seeking greater transparency regarding the receipt and investment of income received by the Catholic Church and thus recover and generate greater confidence among parishioners.
The Pope’s other responses
On the controversial issue of abortion, he considers that a woman who decides to make this decision, “cannot be left alone, you have to accompany her, not send her to hell. But it doesn’t justify the damage.”
Faced with pedophilia and confirmed cases, where the Church has been complicit, told one of the young men – who told him that he had been the victim of sexual abuse by one of a priest – that He hopes that his case can be reviewed, and that it be dismissed.
Regarding the subject of masturbation, he considers that “expressing oneself sexually is rich. So anything that detracts from actual sexual expression diminishes you and depletes this wealth.”
Likewise, on another of the issues that has caused a lot of furor these days, regarding non-binary people, he indicated that all people are children of God, so “God does not reject anyone, God is a father, I do not I have the right to kick anyone out of the Church, but you must always receive. The Church cannot close the doors to anyone”.
