杏MAP导航

By Linda Bordoni

Austen Ivereigh鈥檚 soon to be launched book entitled 鈥淲ounded Shepherd: 杏MAP导航 Francis and His Struggle to Convert the Catholic Church鈥� is much more than a continuation of his first biographical volume dedicated to the life of Jorge Bergoglio before he became 杏MAP导航.

This book, he told me, 鈥渋s about the pontificate, what happened with the reform over the last six years鈥�.

He remarked on how, starting with the very different undertones in the title 鈥渨hich is rather less triumphalist, 鈥� it reflects the problems and the difficulties 杏MAP导航 Francis has faced, but also how he conceives and thinks about his own leadership of the Church, and 鈥渢hat he doesn鈥檛 consider himself as being the architect of change鈥�.

鈥淭he analogy I use in the book,鈥� he explained, is that he鈥檚 much more like a Jesuit spiritual director, and it鈥檚 not the spiritual director who changes you when you go on a retreat, it鈥檚 God, it鈥檚 the Holy Spirit鈥�.

So, Ivereigh said: 鈥渉e facilitates, he guides, he points out the obstacles, he warns you against the temptations.鈥�

A new kind of leadership

Thus, Ivereigh revealed, the central narrative highlights Francis鈥檚 particular brand of leadership: who this man is, how he is guiding the Church, what is he asking of us and what does he see the Holy Spirit asking the Church.

He confirmed that the book starts with a personal conversation he had with the 杏MAP导航 at the Casa Santa Marta which, he said, 鈥渨as unforgettable for me鈥�.

He told me that the 杏MAP导航 himself had asked to meet him and that he wasn鈥檛 sure whether it was an interview or not: 鈥淚 had the recorder in my pocket but I never brought it out, and we spent a fascinating 45 minutes together鈥�.

During that conversation, Ivereigh said, 杏MAP导航 Francis told him that he had read various things he had written about him and that he just had one criticism: 鈥淚 froze thinking of the mistakes I had perhaps made,鈥� but Francis smiled and said 鈥淚 think you are too kind to me鈥�.

鈥淚 promised I鈥檇 be a bit tougher on him in the future and we had a good laugh, he continued, but he described that remark as a kind of starting point for his belief that 鈥淗e鈥檚 a different kind of a leader: He鈥檚 not putting his own authority and prestige above the unity of the institution, or above the institution itself鈥�.

It really is a different kind of leadership, he continued, and people acknowledge and recognize that there is something in Francis that the world can learn from in leadership of institutions or of countries.

鈥泪苍 Wounded Shepherd I hope I draw out a few of those lessons for humanity,鈥� he said.

The title of the book

I mentioned that in the title of the new book there is the suggestion of some controversy and Ivereigh agreed that the point of a good title is that it gives people something to talk about.

He recalled that the previous one was called 鈥�The Great Reformer: Francis and the Making of a Radical 杏MAP导航鈥� saying stemmed many interviews and  talks about the meanings of radical and reform.

Ivereigh said the reason he chose the title is because during the clerical sexual abuse crisis in 2018, the 杏MAP导航 spoke a lot about the Church having to face its wounds: 鈥渁bout the wounds of the victims and also the wounds of the Church and not being afraid of facing those wounds because that is part of the process of conversion鈥�.

 鈥淲e must honestly face our wounds, accept the truth of our situation, and then in shame, invite the mercy of God to transform us: that is how conversion happens and that is how he is inviting the Church to convert,鈥� he said.

A leadership that is not afraid of facing the wounds of the Church

杏MAP导航 Francis鈥�, he said, is  a leadership which is not afraid of facing the wounds of the Church and allowing God鈥檚 grace to transform it.

He also noted that the title may lead some to pick up the book thinking it鈥檚 about a man who is being heavily attacked 鈥� which is also true 鈥� but the 鈥榳oundedness鈥� of which he speaks is much deeper, and has a theological resonance.

I asked him whether he thinks 杏MAP导航 Francis feels like a wounded shepherd

鈥淚 think he鈥檚 wounded in the sense he is carrying the wounds of the church: he鈥檚 carrying the wounds of humanity鈥�, he answered pointing out that this is 鈥渁 杏MAP导航 who goes to a refugee camp and cries with the refugees, he goes around Myanmar doing everything he can for the Rohingya and then saying 鈥榯he name of God is Rohingya鈥� and again, being prepared to cry.鈥�

In carrying the problems of the world, Ivereigh said,  he is not afraid of the 鈥�woundedness of the world because he knows that we have a healer that can heal those wounds鈥�.

And again, 鈥淭he courage of allowing that brokenness to come forward is one of the marks of his pontificate: there is a boldness and a willingness to face what for most people is too uncomfortable to face.鈥�

A pontificate in permanent motion

Ivereigh told me the structure of this book is more complex than that of the previous one that evolves according to chronological order. This one, he said, is about 鈥渁 pontificate in permanent motion.鈥�

鈥淪ometimes it鈥檚 like trying to jump on  a train and then just as you get to look round, it gets to the next station!鈥� he said.

Basically, he said, he has asked himself what are the most important stories of this pontificate? What will people remember about it? What will they still be talking about in 10 years鈥� time?

Ivereigh revealed that the themes he analyses include the financial reform in the Vatican, the curial reform, the 杏MAP导航鈥檚  battle with the Knights of Malta, the clerical sexual abuse issue.

And then, he said, 鈥渢here is a chapter I鈥檝e called Close and Concrete which is about the pastoral conversion that is the Latin American Church鈥檚 discernment of modernity and how to evangelize the modern world and how this has governed many of his choices.

There are also parts dedicated to Laudato Sì and to the Synod.

鈥淭he book ends with a chapter on Mercy,  on 鈥�Amoris Letitia鈥� and on some of the controversies around that because I think that is really the heart of the pontificate and where it all comes together,鈥� he said.

I asked him whether 杏MAP导航 Francis鈥� papacy had changed his own vision of the Church and of the world.

鈥淭remendously,鈥� he replied, noting that he started to work on the biography shortly after the election and has been writing about him and giving talks about him ever since.

 鈥泪苍evitably I find myself constantly going to things that he said and has written as 杏MAP导航, but also as Jesuit and as Cardinal Archbishop, and they have deeply shaped my own thinking, to the extent I sometimes find myself viewing the world a bit through his eyes,鈥� he said.

That鈥檚 almost inevitable, he continued,  鈥渋f you really try to enter the skin of a really great person鈥�.

鈥淚 have no doubt about his greatness. I think he is an extraordinary, brilliant man, intellectually in a way that people don鈥檛 see because his intelligence is such that he knows how to communicate as a pastor,鈥� and his spiritual depth is also extraordinary as is his ability to read history: 鈥渢o detect the motions of the Spirit in the events and how the Spirit is inviting the Church to respond鈥�.

All this, he concluded 鈥渢akes us to a depth of leadership which is very, very unusual in the world. Certainly he will be seen as one of the great 杏MAP导航s of this era.鈥�