This week we have been able to listen to the Pope pondering and this gives us the chance to ponder the Pope. No other religious figure commands such authority or influence over his people. As a result his brand becomes the flavour of his time.

He could be called the “big picture Pope”. His message is for all. Those in his church and those outside it. It is firstly a pastoral message not a doctrinal or liturgical one. It gets its creditability in good measure from his acknowledgment that he is a sinner. He identifies with hurt people and sees his church as a place of healing the wounded. He describes it as a field hospital after battle.

On evangelism the Pope reckons that failure in this area is due to people being closed to God. He thinks they do not hear Jesus knocking on their door. He adds somewhat mischievously that when Jesus knocks from within we do not let him out!

Interestingly a number of commentators have quaintly mentioned that the Pope remains a Catholic! He is using language more familiar to other churches in this his second interview where he tackles a wide variety of subjects. His desire is not only that his clergy should be poor (his first interview) but that they get involved with sinners in their need without losing the way themselves.

He also wants that within his church local disputes should be settled locally. This seems to indicate a move in the direction of independency of the local church within the overall structure of Rome.

What does the Bible say to all this?

When Jesus was knocking on the door it was of course the door of a church which had excluded him “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me” (Revelation Chapter 3 verse 20). As the church is people not premises it could be said that Jesus knock never goes unanswered. There are always those who hear his voice. He never knocks in vain.

Certainly as believers we would have to agree there are times we who have embraced the Saviour do not “let Him out” and our guilty silence we confess as sin.

On the message he advocated, “Proclamation in a missionary style focused on the essentials, on the necessary things: this is also what fascinates and attracts more, what makes the heart burn, as it did for the disciples at Emmaus”. St Luke records the conversation that made the hearts burn “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself” (St Luke chapter 24 verse 27).

It is the plot-line of the Bible. It was the promised Messiah, His birth and now his death and resurrection. They had plenty to speak about on the road to Emmaus. May we proclaim Him as the sinner’s friend who died that they may be forgiven and rose that we might know with certainty that it is all true.