El papa Francisco ha conquistado al mundo con su sencillez, con palabras profundas y un mensaje revolucionario: «Quiero una Iglesia pobre para los pobres, y por esto he elegido llamarme Francisco»: con estas palabras se dirigió a los periodistas en una audiencia especial para los profesionales de los medios de comunicación.
Ahora podemos acercarnos un poco más a su pensamiento gracias al libro «Solo el amor nos puede salvar», que publica Romana Editorial con la Libreria Editorial Vaticana.
En sus casi 200 páginas se contiene el testimonio directo del pensamiento y de la experiencia pastoral y de vida del nuevo Pontífice, que nos invita a meditar y reflexionar acerca de los temas fundamentales, como la educación en el amor, el matrimonio, la defensa de la vida, la dignidad del trabajo, el cuidado de los ancianos, además de algunos temas claves de su enseñanza como la deuda social, la pastoral urbana y la audacia de anunciar el Evangelio cruzando el umbral de la fe.
A lo largo de veinte capítulos, este volumen unifica y sistematiza el pensamiento del santo padre acerca de los aspectos esenciales de la fe y de la vida, expresado a través de discursos, homilías e intervenciones diversas, para dar un nuevo sentido a nuestra vida y a nuestra fe.
La presentación de la edición en lengua española es del cardenal Antonio Cañizares, como muestra de reconocimiento y de gratitud a la figura del papa Francisco, en un momento capital en la vida de la Iglesia.
Jorge Mario Bergoglio nació el 17 de diciembre de 1936 en Buenos Aires, Argentina, en el seno de una familia católica de origen italiano. Licenciado en filosofía, recibe la ordenación sacerdotal en 1969 en la Compañía de Jesús y en los años sucesivos se dedica al sacerdocio y a la docencia en la Universidad de El Salvador. En 1973 fue nombrado provincial de los jesuitas argentinos hasta 1979. Fue consagrado obispo de Oca en 1992 y arzobispo de Buenos Aires y primado de Argentina en 1998. El papa Juan Pablo II lo creó cardenal el 21 de febrero de 2001.
El 13 de marzo de 2013, tras un brece cónclave, es elegido papa escogiendo el nombre de Francisco.
Pope Francis (Latin: Franciscus; Italian: Francesco; Spanish: Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) was the 266th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, a title he held ex officio as Bishop of Rome, and Sovereign of the Vatican City. He chose Francis as his papal name in honor of Saint Francis of Assisi. Francis was the first Jesuit pope, the first from the Americas, the first from the Southern Hemisphere and the first non-European pope since the Syrian Gregory III, who died in 741.
Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Bergoglio worked briefly as a chemical technologist and nightclub bouncer before beginning seminary studies. He was ordained a Catholic priest in 1969 and from 1973 to 1979 was Argentina's provincial superior of the Society of Jesus. He was accused of handing two priests to the National Reorganization Process during the Dirty War, but the lawsuit was ultimately dismissed. He became the Archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1998 and was created a cardinal in 2001 by Pope John Paul II. He led the Argentine Church during the December 2001 riots in Argentina, and the administrations of Néstor Kirchner and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner considered him a political rival. Following the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI on 28 February 2013, a papal conclave elected Bergoglio as his successor on 13 March.
Throughout his public life, Pope Francis had been noted for his humility, emphasis on God's mercy, concern for the poor, and commitment to interfaith dialogue. He was credited with having a humble, less formal approach to the papacy than his predecessors, for instance choosing to reside in the Domus Sanctae Marthae guesthouse rather than in the papal apartments of the Apostolic Palace used by his predecessors. In addition, due to both his Jesuit and Ignatian aesthetic, he was known for favoring simpler vestments void of ornamentation, including refusing the traditional papal mozzetta cape upon his election, choosing silver instead of gold for his piscatory ring, and keeping the same pectoral cross he had as Cardinal. He maintained that the church should be more open and welcoming. He did not support unbridled capitalism, Marxism, or Marxist versions of liberation theology. Francis maintained the traditional views of the church regarding abortion, euthanasia, contraception, homosexuality, ordination of women, and priestly celibacy. He opposed consumerism, irresponsible development, and supported taking action on climate change, a focus of his papacy with the promulgation of Laudato si'. In international diplomacy, he helped to restore full diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Cuba.
I have taken the opportunity over my break to pick up some books I have saved for holiday reading. This is one of them. Its been a perfect book to dip into to start 2026.
Only Love Can Save Us is the second published collection of letters, homilies, and talks that Pope Francis gave before he was elected Pope Francis. The first anthology was titled Encountering Christ and drew mainly on homilies for specific feasts, like Ash Wednesday, Easter Vigil, and Corpus Christi. This book, however, focuses its selections on Pope Francis' words on love and charity. As can be expected, there is some overlap between the two. After all, you can't encounter Christ without love and charity. Therefore, you will notice that Only Love Can Save Us talks # I, XV, and XVI are also found in Encountering Christ.
The most interesting of the chapters to me was "Chapter XI: Freely You Have Received, Freely Give." In this Lenten letter, which only spans three pages, Cardinal Bergoglio discusses complacency in life. I use the term discuss very loosely, as it is more of an exhortation against growing complacent. "We get used to waking up each day as though this is the only way things can be. We grow accustomed to violence as something that is never missing from the news. We get used to the habitual landscape of poverty and misery as we walk the streets of our cities. We get used to youngsters shedding their blood and women picking up what others have discarded and carting it off. We get used to living in a pagan society where kids no longer know how to pray or make the Sign of the Cross. This complacency numbs our hearts, destroying any capacity for that sense of wonder which renews our hope. We are unable to recognize evil and fight against it."
If you are looking for a clear representation of what Pope Francis believes, then look no further than this book. With topics such as marriage, children, the elderly, etc., all covered through the lens of love, you will be inspired to do more and be more for others. We can't just sit back and expect the world to get better on its own. We can't expect the hungry to be fed, the naked to be clothed, and the sick to be treated without Christian charity. Only Love Can Save Us is the wake-up call we all need to hear.
A beautiful, uplifting collection with a heavy focus on social responsibility and the closeness that God calls us to. A perfect little book of homilies and letters to use for ministers and in bible studies or different church groups looking to better connect themselves to the teachings of the Church and their application.