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rug

(82,333 posts)
Sun Apr 7, 2013, 08:51 PM Apr 2013

Francis gets his 'oxygen' from the slums

by John L. Allen Jr. | Apr. 7, 2013

Buenos Aires, Argentina – In Argentina, they say that if you want to understand the priestly soul of Jorge Mario Bergoglio, then you have to know the villas miserias, literally “villas of misery,” meaning the slums in Buenos Aires where the poorest of the poor are found.

According to Fr. Juan Isasmendi, who lives and works in one of the villas, this is where the future Pope Francis filled his lungs with the “oxygen” he needed to think about what the church ought to be.

There are roughly twenty of these slums in Buenos Aires, often just a block or so away from gleaming high-rise office towers and luxury apartment buildings. Bergoglio’s pastoral revolution was to hand-pick a cadre of especially strong, dedicated priests not just to visit the villas but to live and work here, sharing the lives of the people down to the last detail.

The aim was to make the faith come alive, preaching and celebrating the sacraments while also turning the parish into a comprehensive social service center – fighting drugs and violence, educating the young and taking care of the old, providing job training and even community radio to give the people a voice.

http://ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today/francis-gets-his-oxygen-slums



http://en.mercopress.com/2011/10/07/half-a-million-families-live-in-buenos-aires-slums-and-keep-expanding-vertically-and-horizontally

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Francis gets his 'oxygen' from the slums (Original Post) rug Apr 2013 OP
I like this Pope more every day goldent Apr 2013 #1
It's daunting. rug Apr 2013 #2

goldent

(1,582 posts)
1. I like this Pope more every day
Sun Apr 7, 2013, 09:24 PM
Apr 2013

We've already seen the influence of his background. I guess the question might be how effective he will be dealing with the executive aspects of the office.

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