The Catholic Herald reports:
Pope Francis revealed that it pains him when he sees a nun or priest driving an expensive car, and he praised the beauty of the bicycle, noting his 54-year-old personal secretary, Msgr Alfred Xuereb, gets around on a bike.
May I suggest:
However, he admitted that with work to be done and distances to be covered, cars are a necessity. Just “get a humbler one,” he said, before adding that if the flashier model still looks tempting, “think about how many children are dying of hunger”.
Again, may I suggest:
About Schütz
I am a PhD candidate & sessional academic at Australian Catholic University in Melbourne, Australia. After almost 10 years in ministry as a Lutheran pastor, I was received into the Catholic Church in 2003. I worked for the Archdiocese of Melbourne for 18 years in Ecumenism and Interfaith Relations. I have been editor of Gesher for the Council of Christians & Jews and am guest editor of the historical journal “Footprints”. I have a passion for pilgrimage and pioneered the MacKillop Woods Way.
Hi David – long time no see. I appreciate the Pope’s sentiments, but if cars are necessary for many priests – and it seems they are – is it not a false economy to buy an older car, for example? And really, it’s an older car that is going to look more humble – any newer car will look pretty flashy even if it is small and relatively simple in design. Because newer cars, if they are maintained well – are often very reliable and therefore less expansive all up. What do you think?
I think the best answer comes from this post by Fr Z.:
http://wdtprs.com/blog/2013/07/dear-holy-father-about-my-car-wherein-fr-z-offers-advice-to-priests-about-vehicles/
So it seems the Pope’s remarks are actually pretty unhelpful in this case, which is more or less what I was saying. I greatly enjoyed Fr Z’s take. Thanks for the link.