FrancisChurch theology now in song
Do you ever get the feeling Pope Francis is just sort of place-holding while armies of people hype him into all kinds of figures like pope, theologian, politician, climatologist, economics advocate, St. Francis and Mother Teresa, cool guy, bouncer, teddy bear, pop star?
Ever since I learned that the Vatican retained consulting giant McKinsey & Co. fresh after the Conclave to help Pope Francis ‘reform’ the Church, I find little to celebrate in stunts like this:
Pope Francis was already well-qualified as a renaissance man, having formerly worked as a bouncer at a Buenos Aires nightclub and a literature professor who was able to persuade Argentina’s most famous surrealist writer, Jorge Luis Borges, to speak to one of his classes.
Now the pontiff has added yet another improbable title to his résumé: Songwriter.
His new song, titled “So we can all be one,” is the product of a collaborative effort between Francis and Italian-Argentinian musician Odino Faccia. Its public debut came March 29, following Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square.
“We are the world. We are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day so lets start giving!”
Faccia told Crux in an e-mail that his bond with the pope comes from his work, since he’s always favored music that promotes peace and values. Faccia, considering how to transmit the pope’s message of peace, composed the song — with Francis’s full support.
After singing the new song on Palm Sunday, Faccia told Crux that Pope Francis reported to him that he “really liked the song.”
“This message is of light and hope,” begins the three-minute song, which describes overcoming darkness and looking ahead, rather than allowing the past to determine one’s life.
“So that all may be one,” goes the chorus, “gone are the walls, only the value of the encounter remains … that is the bridge to peace.”
I think this effort may express the Pope’s theological insights quite well. Could it possibly be more trite, empty, or meaningless?
“So we can all be one,” distributed by Sony music, is currently available only in Spanish, but Faccia said versions are currently being produced in English, Italian, Polish, Arabic, and Portuguese.
They say St. Peter’s Square is really starting to thin out for papal appearances. I wonder what will happen when they start playing this in a loop?