Utah Catholic Bishop Talks About ‘Beyond Wonderful’ Meeting With Pope Francis

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – “Experience the Christ who is alive in their hearts, the Christ who loves, the Christ who saves.” That was the message on Easter Sunday from the Most Rev. Bishop Oscar Solis.

A few months ago, the bishop of the Diocese of Salt Lake City had an experience he described as “beyond wonderful” — an audience with Pope Francis.

“Excitement may not be a word that can describe my personal experience,” he said.

Bishop Solis traveled in a group of 12 bishops from the western U.S. to the Vatican to meet with Pope Francis in February.

“And the joy in the face of our Holy Father and the excitement, like welcoming his long-lost son, coming over,” he said. “You feel the warmness of his personality.”

All Catholic bishops have face-to-face meetings with the Pope every five years. It is called an Ad Limina, when they offer a report on the diocese and make a pilgrimage, an opportunity to have Mass together as bishops and to pray at the tomb of St. Peter, believed to be the first Bishop of Rome.

Bishop Solis has visited with two other Popes at the Vatican as an auxiliary bishop in Los Angeles. He said this time was different.

“There is an openness, dialogue, you know, the Holy Father asked us to ask questions to him,” Bishop Solis said. “There was no script and you can ask him any question. He said, ‘ask me any question.’ He even said, ‘you can critique me — criticize me, here, now!’”

Solis said the bishops asked the tough ones, beginning with polarization within the Church.

“He said, ‘don’t be afraid of diversity, don’t be afraid of differences, oppositions, of a way of thinking,'” Bishop Solis recalled. “‘That’s good, that’s healthy.’”

They also spoke about sexual abuse by priests in the Church.

“(Pope Francis) mentioned about accountability, you have to be accountable,” he said. “His heart bleeds when we spoke about the sexual abuse crisis, you know, he felt for the victims.”

The bishops then asked for Pope Francis’ counsel.

“Sometimes you question yourself, you know, what I have to do,” Bishop Solis said. “Look how broken I am. Unworthy as it is, and yes, given that responsibility to become a shepherd.”

Pope Francis told them to do what he does.

“You have to pray and let the Holy Spirit guide us, guide you,” Solis said.

And from the Pope, there was recognition of Bishop Solis and religious leaders from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

“When (Pope Francis) heard Utah, you could see his forehead, he said, thoughtful, ‘Los Morones, the Mormons,’” he said. “So he remembered the recent visit of President Nelson.”

Last January, President Russell M. Nelson, President M. Russell Ballard and two Italian Church leaders visited Pope Francis at the Vatican and spoke of his kindness to them.

For Bishop Solis, his visit with Pope Francis came at a special time for him.

“I was celebrating my 16th anniversary of my ordination as a bishop, it was doubly special,” he said.

Bishop Solis said he returned to Utah, rejuvenated.

“I’ve made a lot of mistakes but I know that God continues to guide me and is patient with me and is still molding me,” Solis said.