In 1909 Pope Pius X established what remains the premier Catholic institution for the study of Sacred Scripture, the Pontifical Biblical Institute, known as the Biblicum. Those who graduate can proudly use the initials SSL or SSD after their name. It means that they have spent years of their lives immersed in the world of the Bible, the languages and the cultures.
But every memorial of a saint who was a pope always brings up the most basic question, do we still need a pope? I would argue that we need him more than ever.
It was the great petition of Jesus before he went to die
that they may be one, just as you Father are in me, and I in you...so that the world may believe (Jn 17:21)
Unity among humans has always been an elusive thing. For as much as we are social, we easily fracture. The stain of original sin pulls each of us toward the self.
Jesus knows that if the Church he establishes is able to remain one, it will only be by the grace of God, the working of the Holy Spirit. It will also be a compelling sign of God’s power at work in the world.
But for it to be a compelling, convincing sign, it must be real unity. It cannot be simply mutual toleration, agree to disagree. It must be a oneness of mind and heart. The Church must be a visible reflection of the unity of the Trinity.
We human beings are, not merely spiritual, but physical creatures. We need things we can perceive with our senses.
Inside and outside the Church there are those how would pull us apart, as a Church, as a nation, as a human family. They seek to pull us apart for their own advantage.
We need a pope. And God has given us Pope Francis at this moment in the history of the Church for a reason. He as each of his predecessors is called to be the visible sign and instrument of the unity to which we are called.
We must turn our back on every voice that seeks to divide, even if that voice be a priest, a bishop or a cardinal. Today, we pray for Pope Francis, and we know that Pope Pius X intercedes for him and for the unity of the Body of Christ, the Church, founded on the rock that is Peter.
