When Jesus preached in the synagogue, some people were astonished as to how an ordinary carpenter’s son could have such wisdom and do such mighty works!! We see that Jesus experienced rejection in very hometown and household. Looking at the revolutionary papacy of our Holy Father Pope Francis, the question that arises is this: “Where then did this man get all these things?” (Mt.13.56). 17 December is the birthday of the Holy Father Pope Francis and later on 13 March, 2018, he will complete five fruitful years of his prophetic papacy, notwithstanding the scathing accusations of heresies against him. The secret to his fortitude and tenderness, creativity and fidelity, resilience and humility that we have witnessed in the Holy Father from day one is evident in the interview given to Antonio Spadaro, SJ:

“I pray the breviary every morning. I like to pray with the psalms. Then, later, I celebrate Mass. I pray the Rosary. What I really prefer is adoration in the evening, even when I get distracted and think of other things, or even fall asleep praying. In the evening then, between seven and eight o’clock, I stay in front of the Blessed Sacrament for an hour in adoration. But I pray mentally even when I am waiting at the dentist or at other times of the day.”

Among the myriad of witnesses left by the Holy Father for the modern world, the one we can consider a cornerstone witness is a life rooted and grounded in an unmoved faith born out of ceaseless prayer. If Pope Francis has been able to move mountains, it is due to that mustard seed nourished by hard contemplation. If he has been able to lead the church through a rough ‘red sea’ and the ‘desert’ of the modern times, it is thanks to the ‘staff’ in his hand given by God and His Presence like the ever-guiding cloud and the Pillar of Fire. After all, such an incorrigible spirit of contemplation cannot but be translated into an irrefutable action that changes any reality irreversibly, be it of the Civil Society or of the Church!

Vinayak Jadav, SJ