His name is Life. My story in history the autobiography of Pope Francis. It will be released on March 19 in Europe and America. HarperCollins and Jorge Mario Bergoglio wrote it with Fabio Marchese Ragona, Mediaset correspondent in the Vatican. Today the Corriere della Sera anticipates certain passages from the book in an article by Aldo Cazzullo. In the text, the pontiff speaks of his grandmother Rosa Margherita Vassallo, his election as cardinal and Joseph Ratzinger. But also the meeting with Diego Armando Maradona and the coup d'état in Argentina. And he defends himself from the accusations. Among these, that of being a communist. With an anecdote: “Someone, after my election as pope, said that I often spoke about the poor because I too would be a communist or Marxist.”
Red shoes and communism
And then: “A cardinal friend also told me that a lady, a good Catholic, had told him that she was convinced that Pope Francis was the anti-pope. Motivation? Because I don't wear red shoes! But speaking about the poor does not automatically mean being a communist: the poor are the standard of the Gospel and are in the heart of Jesus! In Christian communities, property was shared: this is not communism, this is Christianity in its purest form! Then the story moves on to his girlfriend: “During that year at the seminary, I also had a little crush: it's normal, otherwise we wouldn't be human beings. I had a girlfriend in the past, a very nice girl who worked in the film industry and then got married and had children. This time, however, I was at one of my uncles' wedding and I was dazzled by a girl. She really turned my head, she was so beautiful and intelligent. For a week, I still had his image in my mind and it was difficult for me to pray! And then, fortunately, it passed and I devoted myself body and soul to my vocation.”
Killer abortionists
In this book, the Pope condemns the practices of abortion and uterus rental: “We must always defend human life, from conception to death; I will never tire of saying that abortion is murder, a criminal act, there are no other words: it means throwing away, eliminating a human life that is not to blame.” And he defends accusations of complicity with the Argentine dictatorship: “It was the revenge of a leftist who knew to what extent I had opposed these atrocities. On November 8, 2010, I was also questioned as a person knowing the facts in the trial on crimes committed under the regime. The interrogation lasted four hours and ten minutes: a deluge of questions… Subsequently, some confided to me that the Argentine government of the time tried everything they could to put a noose around my neck, but in the end they couldn't do it. I couldn't find any proof because I was sober.”
The Vatican and death
In the book, Pope Francis also states that in the Vatican there were those who awaited his death: “Some were more interested in politics, in the campaign, almost thinking of a new conclave. Don't worry, it's human, there's no need to be shocked! When the Pope is in the hospital, many thoughts come to his mind, and there are also those who speculate for their own gain or for the gain in the newspapers. Fortunately, despite the difficult times, I never thought about resigning.”
Ratzinger's resignation
Bergoglio also recounts Ratzinger's resignation and then the controversies unleashed against him using the pope emeritus: “It has, on the contrary, pained me to see, over the years, how his figure as pope emeritus has been exploited for ideological and political ends by unscrupulous people who, not having accepted his renunciation, he thought of his own gain and his little garden to cultivate, underestimating the dramatic possibility of a fracture within the Church”. And he remembers of the meeting in Castel Gandolfo: “We decided together that it was better that he not live in hiding, as he had initially assumed, but that he see people and participate in the life of the Church. Unfortunately, it didn't help much, because there has been no shortage of controversies for ten years and it has hurt us both.”
…and his
Finally he broaches the subject of his resignation. Arguing that the Petrine ministry is ad vitam. And therefore without space for retreats: “Things would change if a serious physical obstacle arises, and in this case I have already signed the letter with the resignation at the beginning of the pontificate which is deposited at the Secretariat of State. If this were to happen, I would not call myself pope emeritus, but simply bishop emeritus of Rome, and I would move to Santa Maria Maggiore to become a confessor again and bring communion to the sick. But this is a distant hypothesis, because I really don't have reasons serious enough to think about giving up. Over the years, some might have hoped that sooner or later, perhaps after hospitalization, I would make such an announcement, but this risk does not exist: thanks to the Lord, I enjoy good health and, if God wants it, there are still many projects. to achieve”.
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