I’m not Catholic, but Pope Francis (or “Papa Francisco”) is my pope–and a model for Fat Soul Philosophy. In honor of his South American tour, I give you the Pope’s favorite verb . . . .
Words have personality; they come and go out of fashion. Take the word “mercy.” A bit old-fashioned, a little shop-worn, a tad dusty. Now, what if “mercy,” a word many spiritual folk have politely shelved, could be resurrected? Is there any hope for “mercy”? Alas, if only it didn’t just sit there looking archaic. If only it weren’t a boring noun, but lively and vigorous as a verb. But wait, it is a verb! Pope Francis (Jorge Mario Bergoglio) has made it so. According to Austen Ivereigh, author of the Pope’s biography The Great Reformer, “Bergoglio liked the way Latin had ‘mercy’ as a verb, miserando, and so created the Spanish misericordiando—an activity of the divine, something God does to you. ‘Dejáte misericordiar,’ he would tell the guilt-ridden and the scrupulous, “let yourself be ‘mercy’d.’” Read the entire blog post . . .
Patricia Adams Farmer 
Patricia, the site design looks great! Wanted to leave a note before following the link! Z
Thanks, Lisa!
Great post, amiga.. I was in Bahia at the museum this past week and then to Manta last night for the inauguration for Jacqueline’s show.. I hoped that you might be there, and that you and Ron are both doing well…
Am now back in Jama 🙂 and slow internet. 😦