Pope Praised by TIME and President Obama

Source:    USA Today      April 24, 2014

        TIME magazine listed Pope Francis in its annual “100 most influential people” in the world issue and asked a fellow world leader to write a tribute: President Obama.


        “Rare is the leader who makes us want to be better people,” Obama wrote. “Pope Francis is such a leader.” Obama lauded the pontiff for his “message of inclusion” and his many acts of kindness, such as “embracing the sick, ministering to the homeless, (and) washing the feet of young prisoners.”

       The president . . .  — who met with Francis last month in Vatican City — (also) cited the issues of poverty and income inequality, and how the pope reminds the world that “we are bound by moral obligations to one another.”

        Pope Francis’ example “challenges us to live out (our) obligations through work — to alleviate poverty, reduce inequality and promote peace; to feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, care for the sick and open new doors of opportunity and visions of possibility for everyone,” Obama wrote.

        “His message of love and inclusion, his regard for ‘the least of these,’ distills the essence of Jesus’ teachings and is a tonic for a cynical age.”


Pope Francis was named TIME's
Person of the Year for 2013



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