For Jack Jezreel, the new pope has shaken up the church and its believers.

“This is a remarkable time to be Catholic,” said Jezreel, the founder of JustFaith Ministries. He said Pope Francis has an “absolutely novel” approach to serving as the head of the church.

Jezreel spoke to people last week at St. Anthony of Padua Church, Atlanta, and St. Lawrence Church, Lawrenceville, about the early months of the Pope Francis. The title of his speech was “St. Francis, Pope Francis, and the 21st century parish.” He also spoke at the archdiocesan chancery.

He pointed out four themes Pope Francis is stressing in the early days of  his pontificate:

• Care for creation
• Interfaith dialogue
• Personal simplicity
• “Tenderness for those who are poor”

He said, “Pope Francis can’t barely talk without bringing up the poor.”

And for parishes, Jezreel said there should be a conversation about what it means to belong to a Catholic faith community. It is not enough to register and only attend Mass weekly, he said  Believers need to be given “this gentle nudge” that membership being part of a ministry and “you are going to serve,” he said.

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