Pope Francis — "We must not be afraid to be a Church that is poor and for the poor."
We must not be afraid to be a Church that is poor and for the poor.
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About Pope Francis (born 1936)
First Latin American and Jesuit pope (2013-), who has steered the Catholic Church toward pastoral inclusion on LGBTQ pastoral care, divorced Catholics, and climate. Closely associated with Pope John XXIII (the Vatican II reformer pope) and Cardinal Walter Kasper (his theological ally on pastoral reform). For an intellectual contrast, see Cardinal Raymond Burke, American traditionalist cardinal, former head of the Vatican Apostolic Signatura — Burke is the public face of Catholic traditionalism that views Francis's pastoral approach as doctrinally dangerous — he has formally challenged Amoris Laetitia and other Francis reforms.
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Understanding this quote
What it means
The quote calls the Catholic Church to embrace simplicity and make serving economically disadvantaged people its central mission. It challenges institutional wealth, prestige, and comfort, arguing Christianity's authentic purpose demands solidarity with those in poverty. The word 'afraid' is deliberate—it acknowledges real resistance inside the Church to abandoning power and resources. This is a call to overcome that fear and return to the radical servant-church model Jesus originally embodied.
Relevance to Pope Francis
Jorge Bergoglio chose the name 'Francis' honoring St. Francis of Assisi's embrace of radical poverty. As Archbishop of Buenos Aires, he rode public buses, cooked his own meals, and rejected chauffeured transport. As Pope, he chose a simple Vatican guesthouse over the Apostolic Palace. A Jesuit trained in service to the marginalized, he grew up in Argentina amid stark economic inequality—making poverty not an abstraction but a lived pastoral reality.
The era
Francis became pope in 2013, years after the 2008 financial crisis deepened global inequality and inspired movements like Occupy Wall Street. The Catholic Church simultaneously faced credibility crises from clerical abuse scandals and perceptions of institutional wealth insulated from ordinary believers. Worldwide, the wealthiest 1% continued accumulating while billions in the Global South lived in poverty. His statement directly challenged Vatican opulence and reoriented the Church toward social justice at a pivotal moment.
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