Pope Francis: The People’s Pope
Father Collins: Yes, I think so. Last year, he invited the President of Israel and the President of the Palestinian Authority to come to the Vatican. It was following a trip that he’d made. And he said to them, you know, could–is there no way we can move forward, and the two of them did try and agree. They didn’t get very far, to be honest with you, because it seems at the moment to be an intractable problem.
However, the Holy See from the time of Pope John Paul II has been very much on the side of the Palestinian Authority because they see this as a minority people who are not getting all the chances that the majority in Israel are getting. But, that–it’s–I have to say that I’m not expert in the area, so I’d be very foolish trying to impose my view onto what I think Pope Francis is doing. But, certainly, Pope Francis is following John Paul’s idea that the Palestinians are the little brother. They may be rebellious, they may be violent, etc., but they’re still ones who have less whereas the residents of Israel have a bit more. And I think what they’ve been trying to do, say, look, both of you be generous, try and dialogue and talk and stop having these extreme views, because ultimately, we’re not going to make any progress on this dialogue.
Christopher Buck: If I had to pick one trait that I see in Pope Francis that I see him imprinting upon the Catholic Church, is Pope Francis is very much a man of inclusion.
Father Collins: Exactly, I agree. That–you’re right. That’s kind of a key quality in him, uh-huh.
Christopher Buck: And this has rippled out everywhere. He’s been doing a lot of outreaches about interfaith dialogue, and the Vatican recently recognized the Palestinian State, which has caused tensions in some circles.
Does he see an active Vatican outreach being able to ease the suffering of the Palestinians in Gaza and ultimately bring peace to the region?
