IOP Panel Discusses Impact of New Pope

Attendees filled the John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum Tuesday night as panelists discussed the newly appointed Pope’s influence on the direction of the Catholic Church.

Moderated by Melinda Henneberger, political writer for The Washington Post and Politics and Public Policy Fellow at the Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, the panel began with an examination of the waves that Pope Francis has made since his appointment.

From his refusal to move into the Apostolic Palace to his choice to spend Easter with young convicts, Pope Francis, the first Argentinian and the first Jesuit Pope, has demonstrated a departure from the traditional European papal presence of the past millennium.

Public Policy Professor Mary Jo Bane noted that the Pope’s style brings a “kind of different image to the church.” The Pope’s namesake, Saint Francis, was known for compassion and care for the poor.

“If he can restore some of the moral authority of the church, he really can be a stronger voice for the poor and vulnerable on the world stage,” Bane said.

Bane also voiced hopes for greater inclusivity and transparency in the institution of the church.

According to panelist John Carr, former Executive Director of the Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development at the United States Catholic Bishops’ Conference, the new pope brings the potential that the “Church and society will look beyond the obsessive concerns of human sexuality.”

The final member of the panel, Kennedy School Professor Father J. Bryan Hehir, said that Pope Francis faces major struggles in the months to come.

Hehir said the new pope must be able to “project his own faith intelligibly” in order to inspire faith around him, adding that the Pope also faces a massive institutional restructuring to combat the sexual abuse crisis worldwide. Hehir said Pope Francis cannot risk losing his message in the politics of reform. Instead, his appointments take responsibility for restructuring the institution of the Church, leaving Francis “a teacher, voice of the human rights, and voice of the poor,” he said.

Hehir added that the Pope faces the issue of instituting more transparency and more inclusivity in the Church, a dilemma that may be mitigated by appointing a more diverse set of people to run the Vatican.

Hennenberger referenced Pope Francis’ Easter homily on the role of women disciples of the Easter gospel in combination with his inclusion of women in the Holy Thursday ritual of washing feet–previously in conflict with canon law–as possible indicators of a future shift in gender politics in the church.

Carr noted, however, that Francis remains “an old guy elected by old guys.”