Pope Francis: A Man of His Word
It’s fascinating that I would take the opportunity to watch Wim Wenders’s documentary on Pope Francis, arguably the most progressive and compassionate religious leader of our time, on the same week I did an interview with a filmmaker about a documentary they did earlier this year on religious leaders who are the complete opposite of His Holiness for the Sonic Cinema Podcast. Though I am not Catholic myself, since he was selected as the new Pope in 2013, I have found his message of acceptance and love and the necessity to nurture the Earth and the environment a most welcome tonic from the typical discussion we get from religious leaders throughout the world. I was curious how Wenders, the director of one of the most spiritual films of all-time (“Wings of Desire”), would approach the man, his teachings, and his life.
For the most part, Pope Francis’s voice is heard on the soundtrack, as he explains his worldview, how he views his responsibilities as a spiritual leader, and what matters to him. There is a sincerity to his message about eradicating poverty, protecting the environment, eschewing greed and riches, and his compassion towards all, even if they do not believe as he does, that has always been refreshing for me to hear. Especially this week, when appalling things have been learned about the US’s treatment of immigrants trying to cross our southern borders, seeing His Holiness address Congress in 2015, with his message of the “Golden Rule” and ending arms sales, and him off the shores of Italy and Greece as migrants from the Middle East look for safe passage, is painful considering how little it feels many people care about the essential meaning of those words and actions years removed. It feels as though Francis is one of only a few genuine leaders in that fight for a better world, and the darkness is swallowing up our world, as it did when fascism rose in the years prior to WWII. I honestly needed a refresher on Pope Francis’s message right now.
Throughout the film, Wenders tells us the story of Saint Francis of Assisi, a man who lived during the Crusades who, like Pope Francis (who was the first Pope to take that name), preached about love of Mother and Sister Earth, an end to violent conflict (even taking a meeting with a Muslim sultan on a trip to the Holy Land), and eradicating poverty. He eschewed worldly possessions and riches to minister to the poor, and a church was built in his honor after he died. These moments are done in black-and-white as old silent movie scenes, and paint a fuller picture of these two men who have taken Jesus’s teachings seriously, and have lived their life by the true example of Jesus instead of just preaching about it. How successfully Pope Francis will be able to have a lasting effect on the world, and the Catholic church, remains to be seen, but having his message of compassion and unconditional love in a divisive world right now, and how Wenders is able to bring that forth in his film, is an important reminder that not everyone is bent on leading the world into darkness.
