Pope Francis Has Gone on Ahead

 Pope Francis passed into eternal life on Easter Monday, April 21st.  He had a final audience with the King of England and his Consort and our own Vice President, J.D. Vance.  

Francis will have a complicated legacy.  He was all about mercy and reconciliation and that means challenging those of us who love the Dogma of The Church to learn to apply Her Teachings with those two principles - mercy and in the spirit of reconciliation.  And let's face it - that ain't easy.  I fall short all the time because of the people in my own parish who let me down, hurt me and cast me aside.  I have moved from shock, to hate, to sadness, to reconciling that God did for me what I didn't even know I needed done - He removed me from a toxic atmosphere and said, "Now, go be Catholic Out Loud in My world."  

I will tell you that I struggle with the ultra right and the ultra left of Catholicism.  Both sides make my teeth hurt.  Trying to live the Teachings and understand the nuances and reject the silliness both sides of the spectrum present as truth can be exhausting.  Withdrawing from parish life and concentrating on remaining physically sober and spiritually fit within the confines of Holy Mother Church has helped.  I just cannot bring any of those people too close because I am just not good enough to love them despite their hardline stance of Right or Left.  So I hold them at arm's length emotionally and beg God for the grace to love them in spite of my failings. 

The Sacraments help.  The grace provided by a Sacramental Life gives me courage to be my Dominican Self - to see the both/and of a situation and to keep trying to love the unlovable..no matter who they are and who they cling to in this earthly life.  They are as wounded as the rest of us.....God loves them too....He loves them no matter how hard they make it to love them.....I want to be like that because I know I make it hard for Him to love me as well....

My wicked sense of humor and desire to poke holes in balloons will keep me out of heaven and in purgatory for a long, long time.

I will pray for Francis....I sure hope he will pray for me.