Pope Francis Puts His Loving Arms Around Brazil

“Preach the Gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words.” These words so resonate with the touch of a 21st century communications expert, that it's hard to imagine that St. Francis of Assisi wrote them nearly 800 years ago. Today, his namesake, Pope Francis, celebrated his first public Mass in Brazil by urging Catholics to resist the "ephemeral idols" of money, power and pleasure. It was also Francis' first international Mass of his first foreign journey as pontiff. During an emotional visit to one of the most important shrines in Latin America, Francis stood in silent prayer in front of the 15-inch-tall image of the Virgin of Aparecida, the "Black Mary," his eyes tearing up as he breathed heavily. It was a deeply personal moment for this pope, who, like John Paul II, has entrusted his papacy to the Virgin Mary and, like many Catholics in Latin America, places great importance in devotion to Mary. After the Mass, Francis blessed the tens of thousands outside the basilica and announced that he would return to Aparecida in 2017, the year that marks the 300th anniversary of a fisherman finding the Black Mary statue in a nearby river. And it was no coincidence that Francis chose Aparecida for his first Brazilian public Mass, for it was in Aparecida in 2007 that Latin American bishops, under the guidance of then-Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, drafted a mission statement on how to reinvigorate the faith on the continent. Cardinal Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, during his homily, urged people to keep their values of faith, generosity and fraternity - a theme Francis intends to repeat often on his visit. Francis said people feel attracted by the many idols which take the place of God and appear to offer hope: money, success, power, pleasure,...often a growing sense of loneliness and emptiness in the hearts of many people leads them to seek satisfaction in these ephemeral idols." And it is true that material wealth has an alluring attraction in a poverty-wracked continent. Francis' top priority as pope has been to reach out to the world's poor and inspire Catholic leaders to go to slums and other peripheries to preach. It is in these slums that evangelicals offer the very poor something new and exciting, "... and the Catholic Church was seen as kind of old and stuffy," said Marcia Cecilia de Souza, the 52-year-old owner of a private school in the southern state of Santa Catarina, as she searched for newspaper to stuff into her soaked leather boots. She had been standing all night in an unsually cold rain to see Pope Francis. "Francis is such an inspiration, so humble and giving I think he's going to bring people back into the fold." Unlike the scenes of chaos that greeted Francis on Monday when he arrived in Rio and a mob of faithful swarmed his motorcade, security was controlled in Aparecida, but not everyone was pleased with it, AP Newswire reported. Joao Franklin, a 51-year-old from Minas Gerais state said, "I felt really excluded by all these barriers and don't see the need for them. We're all here to show our love for him and we just want to get close to show him that love." Nacilda de Oliveira Silva, a 61-year-old maid, perched at the front of the crowd though she was barely tall enough to see over the metal barrier. She explained, "...most of that time on my feet and in the rain and the cold. But I don't feel any pain. I feel bathed in God's glory, and that's because of the pope. For me, it's the same thing as seeing Jesus pass by. That's how moved I feel." AP also reported on Lena Halfeld, a 65-year-old housewife, who paused to deposit in a prayer box an embossed invitation to her niece's December wedding, which she was praying for the Virgin to bless. "I have real faith in the powers of the Virgin of Aparecida," said Halfeld, adding she had made the hours-long trip to the church once a week for a year during her husband's recent illness. "Now he's cured, so I owe it all to her. I can't think of a more wonderful setting to see the new pope." Francis is in Brazil for World Youth Day, a church event that brings together young Catholics from around the world roughly every three years. Approximately 350,000 young pilgrims signed up to officially take part in the Youth Day events. A high school student from Sao Paulo state said the cold rain she endured to get to the basilica was a "test of faith....This is my first time seeing a pope and this was an opportunity of a lifetime for me. I wasn't about to let it go because of a little rain." Back in Rio de Janeiro later today, Francis will head straight to the Saint Francis hospital to visit drug addicts being treated there. Francis is expected to deliver a speech while at the hospital and he'll likely repeat the theme of faith and sacrifice that he spoke about in his homily during Mass in Aparecida. ~~~~~Dear readers, I have a very personal devotion to John Paul II and, in great error, I thought that Francis would be a new John Paul. But he is not...and we don't need another John Paul. He made his contribution for peace, the elimination of Soviet connunism and the rapprochement with the Jewish faith - he answered the call in his own unique way. Francis is different. He is not a "rock star" pope. He is a humble man who loves people close-up. He understood his mission and proved it by choosing the name Francis. He teaches love and trust in God just by living each day. As St. Francis said, “We have been called to heal wounds, to unite what has fallen apart, and to bring home those who have lost their way.” Our Pope Francis is a peacemaker. And if this poor old world ever needed a peacemaker, it is now.