VATICAN CITY
Vatican Information Service
Vatican City, 20 September 2013 (VIS) – Pope Francis has granted a lengthy interview, published in the Italian Jesuit magazine “La Civilta Cattolica” and simultaneously in another sixteen magazines linked to the Society of Jesus throughout the world. The interview was the result of three private meetings and more than six hours of discussion between the Pope and the editor of “La Civilta Cattolica”, Fr. Antonio Spadaro, during the month of August at the Santa Marta guesthouse.
In the interview, more than thirty pages long, the Pope talks frankly about himself, his artistic and literary tastes (Dostoyevski and Holderlin, Borges and Cervantes, Caravaggio and Chagall, but also Fellini’s “La Strada”, Rossellini, “Babette’s Feast”, Mozart, and Wagner’s “Tetralogy”), and his experience in the Society of Jesus and as archbishop of Buenos Aires. He defines himself as “a sinner. This is the most accurate definition. It is not a figure of speech, a literary genre. I am a sinner.”
Referring to his period as Provincial in the Society of Jesus, he says, “My authoritarian and quick manner of making decisions led me to have serious problems and to be accused of being ultraconservative”. However, as archbishop this experience helped him to understand the importance of listening to the viewpoints of others. “I believe that consultation is very important. The consistories, the synods are, for example, important places to make real and active this consultation. We must, however, give them a less rigid form”.
He also talks about how his Jesuit training, and the process of discernment in particular, have enabled him to better face his ministry. “For example, many think that changes and reforms can take place in a short time. I believe that we always need time to lay the foundations for real, effective change. … The wisdom of discernment redeems the necessary ambiguity of life and helps us find the most appropriate means, which do not always coincide with what looks great and strong.”
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