Jorge Mario Bergoglio celebrated ten years as pope on March 13. Because of this, he gave several interviews to several media: he may have seen some. They have a lot in common, since due to the kinship of journalism, we fall on the same topics, and on top of that, they are quite well-known with the Pope. Some are worth checking out.

For those who label him a dormant socialist or an outmoded communist, Francisco defends the social market economy and opposes it to capitalism at all costs and depersonalizing communism. In addition to the term social market economy, the Pope also uses market capitalism, but above all social capitalism, which is an excellent term. He says that the market is not the only arbiter of the economy and ownership has a social function. Money, goods and services are not at the absolute disposal of their owners, but they dispose of them and manage them in the service of the whole society; They are not just for the rich and the pouring for the poor, but for the rich to take care of the poor. This is also confirmed by the empirical examination of entering and leaving this world: we arrive with nothing, and when we leave, we leave everything we have accumulated.

Regarding divorce, which church laws do not allow because marriage is lifelong, Francis repeats what Benedict XVI said three times: a large part of the marriages that take place in the Church are invalid due to a lack of faith. And since you cannot dissolve a thing that does not exist, it would be enough to prove that it did not exist. In this case, the Pope recommends going to the bishop for those who are looking for a second chance: it is the bishop who has the jurisdiction and authority to decide whether there was a previous marriage or not. The nullity of every legal act is a fundamental legal principle, the novelty is that two popes confirm that most marriages in the Church are null and void.

(…) defends the social market economy and opposes it to hard-line capitalism and depersonalizing communism.

As for the resistance to his reforms, the Pope taught a great lesson in contemporary politics: he would be suspicious of decisions where there is no resistance. I would add that this is how progress works and this is how democracies are fruitful.

Homosexuality is not a sin in itself and Francis insists that it should never be a crime, as it is today in about 30 countries, a third of which have the death penalty. What is wrong – and it is a sin, but not a crime – is the use of sex for any purpose other than procreation and mutual assistance of spouses: we have known this for centuries and much longer than the encyclical Humanæ Vitæ of Paul VI. But Francis’ answer goes much further: salvation is for everyone, without any exclusion. It is the central place in the message of Jesus Christ and the essential mission of the Church. Everyone means EVERNE, both righteous and sinners, Ukrainians and Russians, brazen and left-handed, pro-life and pro-choice, rich and poor, Christians and pagans, gay and straight, married and divorced… Jesus calls everyone and everyone resolves their relationship with By God as he can or as he wants. Sometimes you want to and you can’t, but the Lord is always waiting, explains the Pope. (OR)