What kind of king is it whose subjects address him as Papá?
It’s true - in many languages Pope is translated as Papa.
But as the peasants mourned the passing of Papa Francis, you got a sense their tears were more about Papa, as in dad. Loving father.
We have many kings, authorities and rulers. We have so few papas.
Papas give all of their money to the hungry and those who don’t have. Papas pull their motorcade over on a country road to bless a man in a wheelchair. Papas eat in the cafeteria with the cooks and everyday workers. Papas empty their bank accounts for a bunch of juvenile delinquents. Papas go to cities that people would rather forget, where no celebrities live.
The real Papas give all they have to a pasta factory so their humans will not only stay alive, but come alive with hope and love.
Maybe one reason our world is so sideways is because we have more kings than papas.
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A dream of mine and Longer Tables is to one day bring humans from every country on the planet to one table. Can you imagine that table?
And we probably won’t invite the kings, the diplomats, the celebrities. But instead, we will invite teenage delinquents and the grandmas, the mamas, and of course the papas.
Because it turns out, they are already showing us the way.
The way of service. The posture of compassion. The table of love.