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Dariela Aquique: I remember my years as a high school student, especially that teacher who would interrupt the reading of works and who with surprising histrionics spoke of the real possibilities of knowing more about the truth of a country through its writers than through historical chronicles. From there came my passion for writing and literature. I had excellent teachers (sure, those were not the days of the Fast-track Teachers) and extemporization and the non-mastery of subjects was not tolerated. With humble pretenses, I want to contribute to revealing the truth about my country, where reality always overcomes fiction, but where a novel style shrouds its existence.

We Have a Pope

March 14, 2013 | | Print Print |

Dariela Aquique

The new Pope is the Argentinian Jorge Bergoglio who has taken the name, Francisco I.

HAVANA TIMES — By virtue of having gone so many centuries exploited and discriminated by the great powers, any achievement for the Latin American population is magnified from its perspective.

It’s as if that we are crying out to the world: “Look at us, we exist!” This is why today almost all Latin Americans — parishioners and even those who aren’t believers — are elated and proud of the election of a pope born from this side of the world.

For the first time in history there’s an Argentinean Pope, and this has caused people to take to the streets in celebration. Many leaders in the region have even posted their pleasure with this fact on social networks.

Still, I wonder… what does it matter where the Pope was born? If he’s European, Latino, African or Asian, that doesn’t change anything if he’s not an integral human being. To paraphrase an old saying: “You don’t preach morality standing in your underwear.”

This gentleman, who has taken “Francisco I” as his name, has a personal history that’s somewhat regrettable: He collaborated with the dictatorship in Argentina. What’s more, there are charges that he turned people over to the authorities that are on the list of the disappeared.

In addition, he has opposed Argentinean President Cristina Fernandez on the issue of same-sex marriage, a stance that she has called medieval.

Therefore I don’t understand all the excitement by Argentineans and other Latin Americans. The past has weight and nobody changes from yesterday to today. The new Pope will be, in my opinion, another backward church figure.

He is like his predecessor, who once belonged to the Hitler Youth, encouraged the taking of oaths of silence in the face of charges of sexual corruption, and whose pontificate was marked by several scandals.

So, while Latinos are enthusiastically shouting: Habemus Papam, I ask have to ask: But who is he?

 


What's your opinion?

  • mishkamo

    Papacy:archaic institution run by medieval and ossified thinking status quo upholders.
    Ms Aquique: Well written exposé of the “new” Papa in the Vatican and his inconsequential role on the world stage.

  • http://twitter.com/rojo_rojitoCort Cort Greene

    Many don’t remember Operation Condor…all over Latin America.

    We when from having a pope who was a fascist in his youth and the rest of his life, to one who just supported them in Argentina’s Dirty War and the Church cooperation with the military dictatorship is well known.

    The number of people believed to have been killed or “disappeared” could be as many as 30,000 in the period spanning between 1976 and 1983 during the Dirty War against Marxists, trade unionists, students, nuns and priests who practiced liberation theology and other left wing groups.

    I have a very dear friend of mine in Argentina ( who was a friend of Celia Hart also) who lost some of her comrades and family who were drugged, strip naked and drop from planes over the ocean, there were hundreds of these flights.

    The new pope may be involved with disappearance of 125 priests, we know for sure of two Jesuits were abducted on 20th May 1967 after Bergoglio removed their religious licenses to preach in Bajo Flores as well as their protection. The two priests were kidnapped by uniformed military personnel stated the witness. The witness went on to state that Bergoglio must have sent a replacement priest to celebrate mass at the time the military abducted them, as he was never questioned. Dorio and Jalic then spent six months in captivity after being taken to the ESMA. His testimony is hidden on this subject but we also know he helped hide human rights abusers from investigations.

    In the articles below, both in Spanish. The first by the Mexican section of the IMT, describes his order and his past and the criticisms by las Madres de la Plaza de Mayo, his anti-women rantings, his homophobia and being against a women’s right to choice to abortion. The second is detail analysis of him and the Church at that time.

    http://www.laizquierdasocialista.org/node/2821

    http://www.taringa.net/posts/noticias/5189962/Bergoglio-Dictadura-e-Iglesia—Por-Verbitsky.html

  • Griffin

    The future Pope Benedict only joined the Hitler Youth under duress after delaying as long as possible. His father was a policeman in Bavaria before the Nazis came to power. When he refused to join the Nazi party he was fired from his job and forced to find work as a night watchman. He refused to allow his son to join the Hitler Youth, which put his family in a difficult situation with the authorities. When the future Benedict was 15 he was drafted into the German army where he was assigned to an anti-aircraft battery. He refused to fire his gun when the Allied bombers flew overhead. A few months later he was transferred to the Austrian front to dig tank traps. He I’d this for two weeks before dissenting and surrendering to the American army.

    Many people prefer to believe the worst of certain people, but facts still matter. I would caution people to get some facts about the new pope before breathlessly repeating the stories about him now.

  • Friedrich Joestl

    Grifin: for once I can agree with you.
    Cort: it seems to me that this argentinian pope was to a certain extend a victim of the fierce ant-communist politics of one of the most reaccionary popes of all times: John Paul II, who roughly also silenced the liberation theologists, such as Guiterrez, Boff, Helder Camara, Sobrino, Romero ( the most prominent victim), Segundo, Balasuriya,Kappen and Ernesto cardenal etc. Being or excommunicated or silenced. By the way, Benedict also was part of the inquisition. The fight against socialism and communism was one of the big priorities of this time. Lets wait what this pope will do.