QUOTE TO NOTE: Pope Francis on the Power of Dialogue

computer_key_Quotation_MarksPope Francis recently met with a group of Japanese junior high school students at the Vatican and spoke with them about the importance of dialogue.  His words underscore the need for dialogue in our church on LGBT issues.  Let’s hope and pray that the Pope will apply these dialogue concepts to this most pressing need in our church.

As reported in The National Catholic Reporter, here’s what he had to say:

“If we go out to encounter other people, other cultures, other religions, we grow and we begin that beautiful adventure called dialogue.

“Dialogue is what brings peace. Peace is impossible without dialogue.

“All wars, conflicts and troubles we encounter with each other are because of a lack of dialogue.

“We dialogue to meet each other, not to fight.”

Dialogue involves asking the other, “Why do you think this?” or “Why is that culture this way?” then listening to the response, he said. “First listen, then talk — that’s meekness.”

“If you don’t think like I do … and you can’t convince me to think like you do, that’s OK. We can still be friends.”

–Francis DeBernardo, New Ways Ministry

2 replies
  1. Joseph Gentilini
    Joseph Gentilini says:

    Dialogue is very important. On the issue of homosexuality, the hierarchy and the teaching Church has not listened to our LGBT community. Instead they have only issued their judging documents, expecting that we will “change our ways.” As long as the bishops, etc., do not listen to our experiences, their moral guidance will be limping, inadequate, and weak.

    Reply
  2. Lydia Lombardo
    Lydia Lombardo says:

    Parish priests used to listen empathetically to those of us who had moral dilemmas, and their approach was to help in deciding when a person’s conscience superceded a law of the church….many of which were man made. As recently as two years ago, an older priest listened to my problem and led me toward an acceptable conclusion. As these older, compassionate priests die off, they are replaced in many instances by totally unsympathetic priests who attended seminaries which reverted to very old Catholic teaching as delineated by the last two popes. No dialogue-just judgment.

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