In Your Eyes I See My Words: Homilies and Speeches from Buenos Aires, Volume 1: 1999–2004

by Pope Francis, Antonio Spadaro (Editor), Patrick J. Ryan (Foreword)

These homilies and speeches, delivered from 1999-2004, show Pope Francis' unique style of leadership. With a gift of oratory, he has introduced a different way of living the pontificate and intensely renewed people's relationship with faith.

576 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 24, 2019

About the author

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.

Reviews

[Lisa Konet · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an uplifting, positive, beautiful and much needed read at this time in the world with Coronavirus pandemic. This book contains many of the homilies and speeches from Pope Francis in the Vatican and many places he has visited. Some of his thoughts are grim but overall each sermon is meant to be positive and or wake up call to be better and do better; for yourself and others around you.

This was beautifully written and I also thank the translator of this book so everyone can read the words of the Pope. Pope Francis is certainly an eloquent speaker and a symbol of hope and love. This is a powerful book.

Thank to NetGalley, Pope Francis and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I will be definitely be telling everyone about this book regardless of their religion. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Stacy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had an ARC of this book. I’ve not read much about this Pope. This book is very deep, almost too deep for a non clergy. It was good to see the Pope’s explanation of his word. His relationship with God is beautiful.

[Andréa]

Note: I received a hardcover copy of this book at ALA Midwinter 2020.