“Oh, that pernicious pontiff, Pope Paul VI…that crotchety old man sitting on his comfy papal throne in Rome, with no family or romantic involvement, trying to tell us all how we should live our lives and what we should and shouldn’t do with our own bodies (perish the thought!).
And to think: He had been present at the Second Vatican Council! And yet there he was fighting to keep the Church in the dark ages!!!
“Sure, Pope Francis did beatify him last week…but I’m sure he was just trying to be nice.”
Without a doubt, some version of just such a diatribe is in the back of many people’s minds — even Catholics — when they hear the name of Pope Paul VI. But now, we have a wonderful opportunity to reexamine the man and his legacy.
First of all, it is important to understand that he was a deeply compassionate man. Far from being removed from the times, he made a point of becoming intimately familiar with the “signs of the times” and with the hopes, hurts, dreams, fears, and desires of the modern world…so much so that he traveled all around the world and became the first pope to visit all six populated continents, making him the most traveled pontiff in history up to that time.
We also need to remember that Blessed Paul VI came to the papacy at a time in which it was excruciatingly difficult to be pope. The world and the Church were in turmoil. Longstanding societal traditions and mores were being quickly and violently overturned. Technological development was accelerating at an increasingly rapid pace, and the world was getting smaller as it took increasing steps toward globalization. Western society, which had long sustained itself by an emphasis on family life and values, was now quickly shifting toward individual satisfaction (“If it feels good, do it”).
Not to mention the fact that he succeeded the immensely popular and beloved Pope John XXIII, whose shoes it would be impossible to fill.
And yet he lovingly took upon himself the duties of the office and the unique challenges that faced his pontificate, entrusting himself always to the grace of God. He saw the Barque of Peter (that is, the Catholic Church) going through a tempest, and he knew it was his responsibility to steer it safely through the stormy waters of the modern world. So seriously did he take this duty that he laid down his life — a deed which can be done in more ways than one — for the People of God and for the whole world.
Whatever this meant for him personally, he knew this was a cross he had to bear. The sufferings of the Church and of the modern world were to be his own sufferings, in the spirit of Christ.
Out of this came his most famous encyclical — one of the most hated, feared, and maligned documents of recent history: Humanae Vitae (Latin for “Of Human Life”).
We’ll explore this a little — as well as briefly glance at other important (if overlooked) aspects of Pope Paul VI’s legacy — in part two (which will be the final part).
Images from Wikipedia
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