Pope Leo is showing himself to be a gifted thinker who makes interesting connections between ideas people might not ordinarily associate.
For example, shortly after his election, he spoke of doctrine as a synonym of science:
“Doctrine” can be a synonym of “science,” “discipline” and “knowledge.” Understood in this way, doctrine appears as the product of research, and hence of hypotheses, discussions, progress and setbacks, all aimed at conveying a reliable, organized and systematic body of knowledge about a given issue.
See here to understand his reasoning.
This June 14, at the Saturday Jubilee audience, he made another association -- between athletics and hope.
While we all are used to the hope of "I hope my team wins," the Pope went deeper.
When we think of it, sports are animated by hope, in the sense that they involve striving towards a goal, constantly trying to improve our performance, and learning to work with others as a team.
At the same time, our deepest hopes challenge us to make the world of sports an arena where authentically human and Christian values can be exercised and communicated to others for the building of a better world.
Pope Leo was greeting those taking part in the Jubilee of Sports this weekend and in the international gathering on “The Momentum of Hope,” sponsored by the Dicastery for Culture and Education.
"The time you spend together in these days will offer you a valuable opportunity to think about the relationship between athletic activity and the virtue of hope," he said.
The Holy Father called on them to be "missionaries of hope."
