What He Preaches

Pic courtesy CNN

I'd like a dollar for every word that's been penned about the new pope.

There's conjecture about whether he'll take the church off in a new direction, whether he's progressive or conservative, and the significance of his choice of title.

All of this will sell newspapers and lift ratings, but maybe it's worth looking at what he's actually saying.

This is the text of his homily at the Inauguration of his Papal Ministry.

Some interesting extracts -

 The vocation of being a "protector", however, is not just something involving us Christians alone; it also has a prior dimension which is simply human, involving everyone. It means protecting all creation, the beauty of the created world, as the Book of Genesis tells us and as Saint Francis of Assisi showed us. It means respecting each of God's creatures and respecting the environment in which we live. It means protecting people, showing loving concern for each and every person, especially children, the elderly, those in need, who are often the last we think about. It means caring for one another in our families: husbands and wives first protect one another, and then, as parents, they care for their children, and children themselves, in time, protect their parents. It means building sincere friendships in which we protect one another in trust, respect, and goodness. 

And - 

Please, I would like to ask all those who have positions of responsibility in economic, political and social life, and all men and women of goodwill: let us be "protectors" of creation, protectors of God's plan inscribed in nature, protectors of one another and of the environment.

And finally -

To protect Jesus with Mary, to protect the whole of creation, to protect each person, especially the poorest, to protect ourselves: this is a service that the Bishop of Rome is called to carry out, yet one to which all of us are called, so that the star of hope will shine brightly. Let us protect with love all that God has given us!

There's a consistent theme through this homily.

See if you can pick it up.....