Two Popes

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With my son and daughter, I watched "The Two Popes" on Christmas Eve, depicting fictional conversations between Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis. The film accurately depicts the debate between right and left in the Catholic Church. In a PBS Newshour interview, the director voices my bias by saying he began thinking of Benedict (played by Anthony Hopkins) as the bad guy, but when working through the project he could see the grey areas.

Although the two never had those conversations, "The Two Popes" accurately presents right and left positions. It is also historical in showing Francis' conversion as a result of his experience when Argentina's military waged a "Dirty War" against the Catholic Church. We see that guilt and suffering have the power to enlighten. 

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