Pope Francis is also an Imam (religious guide) of this Muslim.
He is a true servant of God and a true follower of Jesus, and equally
represents the ideals Prophet Muhammad stood for; Justice, equality and
Kindness to fellow beings.
I have been looking for an individual who has genuinely understood the essence
of religion and not hung up with rituals, though rituals are a part of
everything we do. Mahatma Gandhi and Mother Teresa are the other two beings
around my life time, although I was born four years after Gandhi’s death, he
has appeared twice in my dreams and has said that I have work to do. That keeps
me motivated.
This man is one of the most inclusive humans God has created in this century;
he respects God by respecting and including every human in his embrace. He has
demonstrated respecting the otherness of others and accepting God
given uniqueness to each one of his creation.
I have connected with him spiritually since March 2013, the day he was appointed
to be the Pope. The more I read about him, the more I bond with him, and
amazingly, what I had believe and articulated about him, he has done it all and
more. It includes repairing the
Muslim-Christian, Jewish-Christian, and Hindu-Abrahimic relations,
respecting those who do not believe in God, Gays and Lesbians, ordination of
women into clergy… no human has to be treated anything less, all are equal in
the eyes of God, and his eyes.
In the picture below, I am in tune with Rivkah, though she is an
Orthodox Jew and I am a Moderate Muslim, we have the same attitude. We are all
humans and are on par with each other. I love this man Pope Francis for
his humility, a symbol of true religious person. When Rivkah could not bow
towards him for her own reasons, he turned around and bowed instead, to let Rivkah, me and the world to learn that the human being is more important than
the religious symbols or the protocol of the Pope. Thank you for doing this
Pope Francis.
I accept him as my religious leader. Showing respect does not have
to be communicated through bowing, it is expressed by merely admiring the man
as Rikvah did without bowing. I am sure some of you may feel the same while
others may opt for the other expressions. All paths are valid.
reality he teaches the essence of religion that is embedded in “all”
religions. I hear him out as if a great Muslim Imam is speaking to me in
a different wrapper. He embodies what a true Muslim, may be a Jew or a
Hindu, Sikh, or a Baha’i ought to be.
I will listen to him
and will follow him. Yet, he is a Christian and I am a Muslim. The essence of
all religions is to make you a human who has no barrier between him and the
other human. I am willing to say, if the religion does not remove hate,
prejudice, ill-will and walls between you and the other, then you really did
not get your own religion. You may go back to your religion until you find
yourselves to be boundless.
Genuine spirituality is feeling like a cog in the wheel of the universe and an
element in the millions of other elements. I am merely a strand in the
World Wide Web, as Chief Seattle would have said it.
Pope Francis will be here in the US in two weeks, I have seriously debated
about seeing him in person, as it is my sincere heartfelt desire to meet him
and feel blessed with his holy presence. I have never felt like this with any
one in my life. The other side of me resists seeing him, why does it have
to be symbolic?
I feel buoyed to write about him, and have written over 20 articles, some of them are at: http://mikeghouse.net/PopeFrancis.asp
Mike is a speaker, thinker, writer, pluralist, human rights activist and a
media commentator committed to building cohesive societies and offers
pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. His info is in 63 links at MikeGhouse.net and TheGhouseDiary.com chronicles his
writings.