Slum Priests Defended By Pope On One-Year Anniversary

Slum priests were defended by Pope Francis Thursday during a video address that was shown on his first anniversary as pontiff, despite the feeling from some that slum priests represent a different church than the historic church that promotes conservative Vatican values.

In no uncertain terms, Francis explained that slum priests are very much a part of the same ministry. According to the Associated Press, Francis said the following:

“The work of the priests in the slums of Buenos Aires is not ideological, it’s apostolic, and therefore forms part of the same church. Those who think that it’s another church don’t understand how they work in the slums. The important thing is the work.”

Some believe that slum priests are being defended by the pontiff thanks to the fact that he, himself, has spent much of his time in the slums — both before arriving at his current position and after.

Though the remark about slum priests was only part of the pope’s videotaped address — it has been viewed as an important part thanks to the amount of time he has spent with those in the slums.

Before becoming pontiff, Francis — formerly known as Jorge Mario Bergoglio —was the top Roman Catholic leader in Argentina. While there, he assigned priests to spend time with people in the slums. This care for the needy and the downtrodden made him a popular figure among the very poor in the country.

To those who know of Francis’ history, hearing him defend slum priests is no surprise.

Eduardo Najera, a community radio station director in Argentina told the Associated Press:

“Francis is a slum pope. It’s not a cliche. He was quite involved in this slum before he was elected pope.”

Though the pope spent Thursday’s anniversary in seclusion, he did appear — albeit briefly — with this tweet:

Please pray for me.

— Pope Francis (@Pontifex) March 13, 2014

By all accounts, it doesn’t appear that Pope Francis will change his opinion on slum priests and that he will continue to work among the poor in the slums himself.

The pope has even taken occasion to scold government leaders who he feels are not reaching out to help people in the slums. The Los Angeles Times reported that in 2013, during a trip to Brazil, Francis told those in the slums that their leaders must do a better job of helping keep them out of poverty.

[Images via Bing]