Pope Francis candidly addresses ten young individuals, offering unfiltered responses in a temporary online session accessible on our website Play.
Unleashed and Unfiltered: A Raw Conversation with Pope Francis
Dive into an unprecedented, candid, and deeply human conversation between Pope Francis and ten young individuals hailing from diverse corners of the world, as documented in the riveting film "Amen. Francis Responds."
As a tribute to his passing, our site Play premieres this thought-provoking documentary for free starting April 24, for the next 15 days. This insightful movie tackles tough topics head-on, with no evasions or empty speeches - giving the world an authentic, unvarnished glimpse of Pope Francis. In under an hour, Francis openly discusses feminism, sexuality, faith, gender identity, Church scandals, and more, all while listening empathetically and facing the complexities of the modern world directly.
A Dialogue that unfolds, as the Pope opens up with sincerity and authenticity
"I carry the weight of feeling that my questions could help others"; "This Pope is extremely down-to-earth," share the ten engaging young minds from Argentina, Colombia, Spain, Ecuador, the United States, Peru, and Senegal, who traveled to Rome for an extraordinary encounter - a face-to-face conversation with Pope Francis. But when he finally enters the room... dead silence. "Who kicked the bucket?", the Pontiff jokes, breaking the tension. "Welcome, we've been awaiting you," they say. "Can I steal a smooch? Two?", a young woman poses, to which the Pope retorts, "Two kisses cost fifty bucks!"
Post the initial pleasantries, the Pope launches into the conversation, "Let's get this show on the road, and the game begins." The documentary follows a "less to more" dynamic. It commences with light-hearted questions to help loosen things up, where Francis flaunts his sense of humor and endears himself to his audience. Gradually, the discussion deepens, touching upon deeper subjects like migration, racism, abortion, feminism, Church sexual abuse scandals, LGBTQ+ rights, and women's roles within an institution that still barricades numerous doors for them.
Abortion and Abuse Within the Church: The most sensitive topics
One of the young women, a countryman of the Pope, confesses that she belongs to both Catholicism and the organization "Catholics for the Right to Decide." She identifies as a feminist and fearlessly asks the question head-on: "Why does the Church obstruct a woman's right to abort?" With tears in her eyes, she adds: "I believe that Jesus would accompany that woman, not judge her as they do in Mass". The topic of abortion leads to one of the tensest moments in the documentary. Francis responds that a woman should never be left alone in such a situation, but also asks: "Is it legitimate to take the life of an unborn child to solve problems?". Although his response does not fully appease, the debate continues. Another young woman chimes in: "I visit abortion clinics on Saturdays to speak with the girls, to comfort them and understand their reasons for making this choice".
One of the issues tackled was that of sexual abuses within the Church. A young man recounts his heart-wrenching testimony, sharing how he was sexually abused by a priest at age 11. "I was studying at an Opus Dei school in Bilbao, and I became the victim of sexual abuse," he confesses, fighting back tears. The Pope, saddened, consoles him: "Calm down, calm down, speak your mind freely. Cry if you have to, it's okay." The young man continued, visibly angry: "The justice system sentenced the perpetrator to eleven years, but, for reasons I won't discuss, the penalty was reduced to only two. He didn't serve time in prison and wasn't prohibited from teaching." The Pope, deeply affected by such cases, expresses his sorrow over such occurrences and firmly states: "Cases of sexual abuse against minors do not expire; I don't want them to ever expire; I hope we can stamp out such horrors within the Church forever."
Digital Mode Access Pope Francis' significant moments and emotions through his own words and expressions in our reviews of his life and papacy...
Join us for a journey filled with challenging conversations, faith, and true human connection. Stream "Amen. Francis Responds" for free, for a limited time, exclusively on our website Play.t jjj
00.21 min
- The documentary "Amen. Francis Responds" discusses various sensitive topics, such as feminism, sexuality, faith, gender identity, Church scandals, head-on, revealing an authentic portrayal of Pope Francis.
- In the documentory, a young woman askes frankly about the Church's obstruction of a woman's right to choose, and a young man shares his story of being sexually abused by a priest as a child.
- The Pope is readly to address complex issues in the documentary, including abortion and sexual abuse within the Church, with empathy and a commitment to change.
- The movie dives deep into pressing topics such as migration, racism, abortion, feminism, Church sexual abuse scandals, LGBTQ+ rights, and women's roles, providing a raw and engaging conversation between Pope Francis and a diverse group of young individuals.
- After a light-hearted start, the conversation between Pope Francis and the young interviewees becomes more serious, tackling hard-hitting topics like the Church's stance on abortion, LGBTQ+ rights, and sexual abuse within the Church.
