More Reasons I Love Pope Francis

Basically from Roe v. Wade through the rise of Pope Francis, American Catholicism had been dominated by conservative forces. Catholicism had become about gays, abortion, and intolerance, and culturally had become very conservative in general.

So then along came the first Latin American Pope, Francis I, and all of that went out the door. We got back to real Catholicism. Help the poor. Heal the sick. Feed the hungry. Speak out against greed and war. Work for peace in areas of conflict.

I love it. Conservatives hate it. Marco Rubio is mad that the Pope worked to end Rubio's failed policy of choice, the Cuban embargo. The Hill complains that the Pope never takes the GOP's side. What they are failing to see is, the GOP doesn't have real Catholic positions. They don't support protecting the poor. They don't support negotiating peace. They don't support things like Food Stamps to feed the poor. They don't support universal health care. They support corporate profits and greed. Of course Francis does not agree.

Now though, Pope Francis is putting his mark on the church for years to come.

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis named 15 new cardinals Sunday, selecting them from 14 nations including far-flung corners of the world such as Tonga, New Zealand, Cape Verde and Myanmar to reflect the diversity of the church and its growth in places like Asia and Africa compared to affluent regions.
Other cardinals hail from Ethiopia, Thailand and Vietnam.

None came from the United States and only three European nations received new cardinals — Portugal and Spain in addition to Italy. Cape Verde, Tonga and Myanmar gained cardinals for the first time.
Francis told faithful in St. Peter's Square that the new batch of cardinals "shows the inseparable tie with the church of Rome to churches in the world."
Five new cardinals come from Europe, three from Asia, three from Latin America, including Mexico, and two each come from Africa and Oceania.

A global church must have a global view, and Francis is insuring that. The new emphasis on real Catholic views from times gone by are in part spurred by the presence of a Latin American Pontiff, and he is allowing for the possibility of even more new views by appointing new Cardinals from all corners of the globe. The United States, which still has the second most Cardinals with 11, is not the only voice on Catholicism. Neither is Europe. A global church needs global views, and Pope Francis is making sure that happens.