Francis and Leo: Starkly Different From the Loggia
On the Outside Looking In: Leo XIV
Ludwig von Pastor’s massive History of the Popes from the Close of the Middle Ages is an interesting source to go to for reactions to the election of the head of the Roman Church. First impressions of the general bearing of a man who would bear the weight of the world on his shoulders were in no way considered superficial in the past. People put a great stress on everything, including the specific physical appearance of the new pontiff, even to the point of discussing the particular shape of his nose and his chin. Having been present at the election of Cardinal Bergoglio, I can assure you that the contrast of the first impact that he made on me in 2013 with that of the newly chosen pontiff yesterday was very, very stark indeed.
Neither my companions nor I knew anything whatsoever about Francis in 2013. Nevertheless, his ghostly appearance on the loggia, the tense minute-long silence that followed, and then his replacement of the mention of Christ with a lugubrious “buona sera” created a deep spiritual chill enhanced by the unpleasant evening weather. That chill was given a further Arctic icing by the sight of the progressive prelatic mafioso entourage surrounding him in his gloom.
We kept expecting something—anything—that sounded Catholic, but by the time we happily evacuated the Piazza it had not yet arrived. Everyone rushed to a nearby bar where the internet connection which had failed us at St. Peter’s could be regained. We searched for some guidance regarding what this all might mean. Rorate Caeli—whose hapless reporter at the Conclave I was supposed to be—provid
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