Pope’s stance on poverty welcomed by Jesuit

LATIN POPE Pope Francis, pictured here with the flag of his home country of Argentina, will be the first ever Latin American Pope.

Pope’s prioritisation of poverty welcomed by Jesuit Father Mac Gréil


Áine Ryan and Anton McNulty

POPE Francis’s prioritisation of the huge issue of ‘poverty’ has been welcomed by fellow-Jesuit, Father MicheΡl Mac Gréil, a former academic at NUI Maynooth and native of Westport. Speaking to The Mayo News in the aftermath of the surprise appointment of the former Archbishop of Buenos Aires, he observed that the new Pope’s ‘simplistic and spiritual outlook’ was very Ignatian, thus adhering to the basic precepts of the Jesuit Order, founded by St Ignatius of Loyola.
“I would agree with what he told his cardinals at his first Mass regarding the fact that the Church must be more than an NGO (Non Government Organisation) and focus on the need for an emphasis on  spiritual renewal. The Church will fight tooth-and-nail for justice but the primacy of the Church is the spiritual element and that is what young people seek,” said Father MacGréil, who has written widely on social justice.
“The primacy of poverty for Pope Francis is clear. All Christians are called to poverty if you read the Gospels. We live in a very materialistic and consumerist world and that kills us, it is like a lead ball around our necks. It kills the spirit and people are not going to Mass because of it.
“He has a very difficult job, the battle between Christ and the world has always been difficult but he has great resources. The spirit is behind him and I hope he has the loyalty of the Church, which he appears to have,” he continued. 
Father Mac Gréil explained that once Pope Francis took the rank of Bishop he technically left the Jesuits because they take a vow against promotion.
“He could be called a former Jesuit but would see himself as a Jesuit, as your past is always with you. However, he would not be under our jurisdiction now but I hope he can revive an interest in the Jesuits.
“In 1773, the Pope suppressed the Jesuits because of their success in South America, coincidentally not far from where the new Pope is from. The Bourbons in Europe had us suppressed and then the Pope followed but we were restored in 1814. That is why the news is so historical. It is almost providential in that the appointment wasn’t made by the Jesuits but by the Cardinals and Bishops of the wider church. It shows an acceptance of the Jesuits by the whole church. We would often have been marginalised. While we were obedient, it was a critical obedience and that didn’t always endear us to other elements in the church,” Father MacGréil said.
Father Mac Gréil said he and the new pope were ordained in 1969,  around the time of the Second Vatican Council, ‘a period of great hope in the Church’

Admiral Brown Society
THE election of an Argentinean Cardinal as Pope was welcomed in Foxford - the birthplace of Argentinean naval hero, Admiral William Brown - where the Papal, Argentinean and Irish flags were flown after the conclave’s quick decision.
Oliver Murphy of the Foxford Admiral Brown Society said they were ‘delighted with the election of Cardinal Bergoglio’ and ’are pleased for our Argentinean friends’.
“The Admiral Brown Society shares in the joy of the Argentinean nation at the appointment of Pope Francis as the first Latin American Pope and also the first Jesuit Pope. The Papal flags and the Argentinean flags have been flying around the town and we are overjoyed and delighted with the appointment,” Oliver Murphy told The Mayo News.
“We have very close links with Argentina and we have received e-mails from friends in Argentina who are full of joy following the election of Pope Francis. He is the son of immigrants and this resonates with the Irish Diaspora there where half-a-million people claim Irish ancestry,” he said.
An invitation for the new Pope to visit Ireland has already been extended by Cardinal SeΡn Brady, who commented on the links between Foxford and Argentina. Mr Murphy confirmed that if the invitation is accepted, Pope Francis would also be invited to visit Foxford.