Congratulations, Pope Francis
With all the usual static in the news media, I was very pleasantly surprised to turn on the evening news and to see the whole program dedicated to the ‘white smoke announcement’ that we had a new Pontiff.
We are told that we live in a post-Christian era, and are told that no one wants to hear about God or religion in this society. As I watched the news on various channels, the message was the same: people were standing in the rain, some over night to witness, in person, the announcement of the new Pope. And this was not just an ‘event’ report. On multiple channels, the entire program was focused on this religious news. We waited to see what other news worthy events were happening both nationally and at the local level. Apparently, nothing important enough to make the media until the late night reports.
Some would say that the Italians are more religious than others. However, the people interviewed were not all Italians. While I am sure not all nationalities were recognized, of those interviewed, there were some from America, some from Argentina, some from other parts of Europe, some Iran. There were also flags being flown from even further afield. If you looked at St. Peter’s Square as a microcosm of the world’s population, it would appear that the people were very interested in God and religion.
So, fellow Christians, in light of this very recent global news event, come out of the closet. Let the people know that while the US may be considered a post-Christian nation by some, God is alive and well in the news rooms. Let us continue to make room for Him in social discourse as well.
Until next time,
Dr. Polly