This decision seems natural, a no-brainer. Pope Francis has been named Time Magazine's 'Person Of The Year.'
"He really stood out to us as someone who has changed the tone and the perception and the focus of one of the world's largest institutions in an extraordinary way," said Nancy Gibbs, the magazine's managing editor.
Pope Francis entered the world scene, then entered our hearts within weeks of taking position. Oddly, this pontiff gained popularity by being controversial. His contemporary, what some call Liberal, stances on atheism, homosexuality, politics, and religious dogma have some American Right-Wingnuts with their panties in a twist (Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh, 'Christian' extremists…). The rest of us who have embraced this man of the cloth, don't really care about the naysayers. They are laughable and in the extreme minority. What many of us do care about is this Pope brings hope and love. He speaks of his disdain for greed and hypocrisy. He denounces the worship of money and he cares for the poor -really cares. Some say he is teaching Christians how to be Christians. There is a sincerity, goodness, and intelligence about Pope Francis that has endeared him to Catholics, and to the world.
I imagine the news of this award may put a little twinkle in the Pope's eyes for about a second, and then he'll go back to his work for the day - trying to change the world, for the better.
"The Holy Father is not looking to become famous or to receive honors," said the Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi. "But if the choice of Person of Year helps spread the message of the Gospel — a message of God's love for everyone — he will certainly be happy about that."
What I continue to read and hear in comments about this new pope, overwhelmingly contain one word:
I'm not religious, BUT
I'm an Atheist, BUT
I haven't been to church in years, BUT
I left the Catholic Church years ago, BUT
Pope Francis makes us feel good. To most folks around the world, Pope Francis qualifies as 'Person of the Year,' period. Congratulations to 'The People's Pope.'
Time Magazine/Video