THE WAY a review of Christian spirituality published by the British Jesuits October 2020 Volume 59, Number 4 POPE FRANCIS PREPARING THE FUTURE ©OP Lawrence Pope Francis window, Manila Cathedral, Philippines THE WAY October 2020 Foreword 5–6 A Time of Choosing: Conversion and Discernment in the 7–12 Mind of Pope Francis Tim McEvoy It is often said that one of the distinguishing features of the current papacy is Pope Francis’s employment of discernment in decision-making. Tim McEvoy here looks at what this means in practice, and how in the Pope’s mind discernment is closely linked to the idea of conversion, something he believes is urgently needed in the contemporary world. Pope Francis: Reform and Resistance 13–28 Austen Ivereigh Austen Ivereigh is the author of two major studies of Pope Francis. In the first, from 2014, he now recognises that he presented the Pope as a heroic leader in a way that Francis himself would certainly reject. Here, by contrast, he views the current papacy through the lens of ‘post-heroic discerning leadership’. Mothering Sundays: Pope Francis and the Challenge of 29–39 Women’s Role within the Church Gemma Simmonds What Pope Francis has said and done about the role of women in the Church has attracted much attention, both from within the Church and outside it, since the earliest days of his papacy. Gemma Simmonds assesses his record, finding both light and shadow, and recognising that there is still much to be achieved. Protestants and Pope Francis: A View from outside the 41–52 Roman Catholic Tradition Elizabeth A. Hoare Robert Burns famously sought the gift of being able ‘to see oursels as ithers see us’. Here Elizabeth Hoare offers a view of Pope Francis from an evangelical Protestant perspective. While appreciating his teaching, she finds in the Pope’s character, particularly in his humility, a source of encouragement not just for evangelical Protestants, but for those of other faiths and none. Papa Francesco: Quo vadis? 53–74 James Hanvey It is James Hanvey’s belief that the papacy of Pope Francis ‘marks a critical moment in the future direction of the Church’. In this article he outlines the key features of this critical moment. Central is placing a deepened sense of God’s compassion and mercy at the heart of everything to which the Church is to bear witness, an outlook that Francis lives out as well as preaching. THE WAY October 2020 The Cross and the Mission 75–83 Jorge Mario Bergoglio In 1984 Jorge Bergoglio, later to become Pope Francis, was working as rector of the Colegio Máximo, the Jesuit house of studies in Argentina. This article, originally given as a retreat talk to the Mary Ward sisters, was published that year. In it he offers a personal reflection on the place of suffering in the life of one who is entrusted with a mission from God. The Spirit of Christ and of the Gospel in Pope Francis 84–88 Guillermo Randle By looking closely at both the actions and the teaching of Pope Francis, it is possible to come to a clearer view of the spirit that motivates and sustains him. For Guillermo Randle, two key aspects of that spirit are discernment and the cross. In this essay he traces the links between the two in the Pope’s own spirituality. Synod and Synodality in Pope Francis’s Words 89–100 Massimo Faggioli In his quest to help the Church as a whole become a more genuinely discerning body, Pope Francis has relied heavily on synods to gather information and reflect prayerfully on issues facing the People of God. Massimo Faggioli here sets out the ways in which the Pope has explained the significance of synodality, and the part that it plays in his ecclesiology. Pope Francis and Church Reform 101–111 Gerry O’Hanlon At least since the days of the Second Vatican Council it has been commonplace to speak of the need for renewal in the Church. However, Gerry O’Hanlon also sees in Francis’s papacy an emphasis on reform, reviewing and updating the structures through which the Church carries out its mission. The next synod, itself focusing on synodality, could be vital in this regard. Christ is Alive: Preparing the Future 112–122 Dushan Croos In 2018 Pope Francis chaired a synod on ‘Young People, the Faith, and Vocational Discernment’. The following year he published a post-synodal apostolic exhortation, Christus vivit. Dushan Croos, who works in a new Jesuit project with young adults in London, finds in the synod process the ‘See, Judge, Act’ methodology popularised by the Young Christian Workers. THE WAY October 2020 The Geography of Pope Francis 123–132 Pierre de Charentenay Unlike their predecessors, popes in the years after Vatican II have travelled widely throughout the world. Far from being mere tourist visits, these journeys have become a central part of the papal mission. Here Pierre de Charentenay suggests that tracing the places that he has chosen to visit reveals much about the apostolic priorities of Pope Francis. Another World Is Necessary: Proposals from Ignacio 133–147 Ellacuría and Pope Francis for a New Global Civilisation Martin Maier Ignacio Ellacuría was one of the six Jesuits murdered by government forces in El Salvador in 1989. He critiqued the present world economic order in ways that have much in common with the responses of Pope Francis. Here Martin Maier considers the alternative visons that these two Jesuits have put forward. FOR AUTHORS The Way warmly invites readers to submit articles with a view to publication. They should normally be about 4,000 words long, and be in keeping with the journal’s aims. The Editor is always ready to discuss possible ideas. A Special Issue is planned for 2021 on Ignatian themes, so articles in this area will be particularly welcome. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We are grateful to the Centro de Espiritualidad Ignaciana de Argentina for permission to translate the article by Jorge Mario Bergoglio, and to the editors of Études for permission to translate that by Pierre de Charentenay. Particular thanks are due to Joseph A. Munitiz SJ for the many translations in this issue. Thanks also to Peter Brook SJ for the cover design; cover image © Mazur/catholicnews.org.uk. The scripture quotations herein are generally from the New Revised Standard Version Bible © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, and are used by permission. All rights reserved. ABBREVIATIONS Autobiography ‘Reminiscences (Autobiography)’, in Ignatius of Loyola: Personal Writings, translated by Philip Endean and Joseph A. Munitiz (London: Penguin, 1996) Constitutions in The Constitutions of the Society of Jesus and Their Complementary Norms (St Louis: Institute of Jesuit Sources, 1996) Diary ‘The Spiritual Diary’, in Ignatius of Loyola: Personal Writings, translated by Philip Endean and Joseph A. Munitiz (London: Penguin, 1996) Dir On Giving the Spiritual Exercises: The Early Manuscript Directories and the Official Directory of 1599, translated and edited by Martin E. Palmer (St Louis: Institute of Jesuit Sources, 1996) Exx The Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius, translated by George E. Ganss (St Louis: Institute of Jesuit Sources, 1992) GC General Congregation, in Jesuit Life and Mission Today: The Decrees and Accompanying Documents of the 31st– 35th General Congregations of the Society of Jesus (St Louis: Institute of Jesuit Sources, 2009) and Jesuit Life and Mission Today: The Decrees and Accompanying Documents of the 36th General Congregation of the Society of Jesus (Boston: Institute of Jesuit Sources, 2017) MHSJ Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu, 157 volumes (Madrid and Rome: Institutum Historicum Societatis Iesu, 1898– ) Papal documents may be found at www.vatican.va and synodal documents at www.synod.va FOREWORD UONA SERA!’ The first words that the world heard from the newly ‘B elected Pope Francis, on 13 March 2013, were a simple ‘good evening!’ In the seven years since then, he has continued to attract the world’s attention, by his words and by his actions. Among the words, his 2015 encyclical Laudato si’, putting care for the environment at the heart of church teaching, stands out. But perhaps his actions speak even louder. From carrying his own case, and washing the feet of women and Muslims on Holy Thursday, to standing alone to pray in a rainswept St Peter’s Square at the height of the pandemic lockdown, Jorge Bergoglio has an instinctive grasp of how to witness to the gospel that he preaches. This special issue of The Way considers the work of Pope Francis to date, in both what he has said and what he has done, and looks at its impact on the Church of today and tomorrow. Writers from across the globe highlight different aspects of the impact that he has made. James Hanvey focuses on the ways that the Pope returns repeatedly to the experience of a compassionate and merciful God. It is his leadership style that has attracted the attention of Austen Ivereigh—in two full-length studies of this papacy, and here in a talk given originally at Campion Hall in Oxford. Gemma Simmonds offers a balanced critique of the Pope’s approach to the role of women in the Church, and Dushan Croos is particularly concerned with the ways in which he views young people. Unsurprisingly, for a journal produced by Jesuits, The Way has a particular interest in Francis as the first Jesuit pope, not least in the way that he has emphasized the need for discernment in considering the current challenges that the Church faces. Tim McEvoy links this theme to that of conversion.