Lessons from a visit

It had to take a papal visit for Filipinos to find out how blissful it is when politicians and other epals stay out of sight.

Those requests from Church officials for epals to stay away and not exploit the visit for partisan purposes worked miracles. This was followed by a request from the Vatican not to use the pope’s image on streamers, depriving epals of another opportunity for displaying their names ostensibly to welcome the pontiff.

With the pope back in Rome and pondering the life of rabbits, politicians are back with a vengeance, cutting each other’s throats as they shift to high gear for the 2016 race.

While the nation is still basking in the rapidly fading afterglow of the papal visit, politicians may want to review the events to get some tips from the hugely popular pontiff on winning friends and influencing people. Bishops and priests can do the same; if they have even a fraction of Francis’ charisma, churches would be full again.

What makes this pontiff so easy to like? We all know one of the reasons: he lives simply, dresses simply. No ornate gold trimmings on his clothing, no red shoes. We all know his story: before becoming the head of the Vatican, he took the bus in Buenos Aires and cooked his own meals in a simple apartment. No SUV, no archbishop’s palace for Jorge Mario Bergoglio. This frugal lifestyle continues even in the Vatican. As we saw at his departure, he carries his own bag.

“May God forgive you for what you have done,” Archbishop Bergoglio reportedly joked to his fellow cardinals after they picked him as pope. A number of them are probably no longer laughing after losing their positions or being forced to give up the pomp and perks of their office.

Simplicity has a powerful impact especially in a developing country where the teeming masses can only look on as the .001 percent lives it up.

There’s a study showing that unhappiness – which can be triggered by personal loss, rejection, failures and similar problems –develops or deepens when people realize they lack something others enjoy. The study explored why people living in certain primitive or underdeveloped communities, with no access to modern communication showing life in more advanced societies, exhibited a high degree of happiness. Not knowing what you’re missing can be good for personal satisfaction.

Discontent is highest in societies where there is a yawning income gap and the masses are aware of the inequitable distribution of wealth, power and resources – especially when the haves flaunt what they’ve got to the have-nots.

In these societies, a genuine icon of simplicity is much appreciated, especially when it is shown by someone holding a position of power.

We saw this public appreciation in the case of Corazon Aquino and Jesse Robredo, which was manifested even after their deaths. To a certain extent, this was the appeal of presidential candidate Noynoy Aquino in 2010, which was why many of his supporters were dismayed when his fondness for Porsches was revealed.

Around the world simplicity – the genuine, unaffected type – plays well.

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Another thing that makes Pope Francis so endearing is his empathy, his readiness to comfort rather than condemn, even as he stands firm on the teachings of the Church.

After hearing so much condemnation from the pastors of the faith, and being assured of eternal damnation in the fires of hell, a sinner may just walk away from the Catholic Church for good.

As I have previously written, providing comfort to the flock is one of the best roles the Church can play. It should not yield the role of listener-cum-comforter to psychiatrists and religious charismatic movements. The Church is most effective when it acts as a caring healer of spiritual wounds rather than a warrior confronting the devil in each of us.

The non-confrontational approach works better in a society where millions of people have enough problems just trying to survive.

If life is hell enough, you preserve your sanity by tuning out when you’re told that hell is what awaits you in the afterlife.

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A third asset of Pope Francis is his quick shakeup of a Church that seemed impervious to reforms. The pontiff is undertaking a long overdue housecleaning in a Church mired in all sorts of scandals including corruption and one of the worst sins, the sexual molestation of children.

Those scandals have surely turned a number of Catholics into freethinkers or agnostics, or driven them to other religions or branches of Christianity.

While stressing his opposition to religious relativism and cafeteria-style practice of the faith, Pope Francis is also providing nuanced interpretations of Catholic teachings and the role of the clergy that do not further alienate straying flock. The interpretations, born of his immersion with the poor in his native Argentina, are needed if the Roman Catholic faith is to survive and even spread.

Finally, politicians and clergy alike may find inspiration in Pope Francis’ message of hope, which goes hand-in-hand with his focus on compassion. With so much suffering, despair and cynicism in this world, hope is in short supply. No one offers hope better than this pope.