Then Jesus went into the temple of God...

The massacre at Archbishop Oscar Romero's funeral.

"If the world hates you, be sure that it hated me before it learned to hate you. If you belonged to the world, the world would know you for its own and love you; it is because you do not belong to the world, because I have singled you out from the midst of the world, that the world hates you. Do not forget what I said to you, No servant can be greater than his master. They will persecute you just as they have persecuted me; they will pay the same attention to your words as to mine. And they will treat you thus because you bear my name; they have no knowledge of him who sent me. If I had not come and given them my message, they would not have been in fault; as it is, their fault can find no excuse. To hate me is to hate my Father too. If I had not done what no one else ever did in their midst they would not have been in fault; as it is, they have hated, with open eyes, both me and my Father. And all this, in fulfilment of the saying which is written in their law, They hated me without cause." --John 15:18-25

If you watch our Pope Francis in this interview which I posted below, notice how he speaks about how Christ without the cross is not Christ. He does not speak simply with "conviction". He speaks with authority; and specifically, a certain un-budge-able fiery Latino authority that does not know the guile of the political correctness of the developed world. Someone else on some other combox somewhere I can't remember said that it must be something good that the president of Argentina "spits nails" when it comes to him. Indeed.

I don't know anything. And frankly I don't think those who do apparently know anything actually know anything. The people who want to be part of the cool club, talking about how they have "reservations" about our new Peter like they were V.I.P.s at the entrance of some fancy restaurant and the host couldn't seem to find their names on the list - yeah, they don't have a clue.

But that's alright. None of us has a clue. It's good then that we have a Pope, a Leader.

I have this feeling, in my bones as it were, that if we don't wake our sleepy heads up and be docile to what our Shepherd is doing now, we are going to find it extremely hard to do so later on - to the point that many will want to jump ship. Some may even try a mutiny.

"They will persecute you just as they have persecuted me..."

Isn't it strange how that is actually comforting? Christ said not to worry for He had already conquered the world. The world has not gained any other position over that which it had since being conquered by Christ. Christ the King let Himself be slain; the strong man's house has already been plundered.

The Church is not a club for the cool or the knowledgeable or any kind of club for anyone. She is always being reborn. God is always new. And that is why fundamentally the Church does not change.