Thursday I was asked “Why get all bothered by who got elected Pope? If you have the faith, what does it matter?”
Good question – I chewed on it for a while before I settled in to remember that while I attempt to walk the Way myself, I do it in community. I think Paul was on to something when he started talking along the lines of “we are all one body” – That would be I Corinthians chapter 12:
12
As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ.
13
For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons, and we were all given to drink of one Spirit.
14
Now the body is not a single part, but many.
Therefore, it is reasonable that I get “all het up” about the body parts that I understand to be suffering and those that I see as calling the shots. There may be times when I have to seal myself off, and times when I have to break out of being sealed off. I’ve suffered enough scrapes and cuts to understand that a scab is a form of protection while the tissue beneath has a chance to heal. If you pick it off too soon, another has to form.
But I’m wandering now. The point I think I getting at is that I must have concern for other parts of the Body of Christ – and indeed, the whole of the world. For, we are indeed all one body. And, that is a part of the reason I think it’s ok to worry about who was elected Pope, and also why I must pray for him as he is called to serve in this way.
That way all shall be well.