Princes or shepherds? Authority and good governance of the diocesan bishop in the light of the magisterium of pope francisco

Abstract

The objective of this article is to offer a reflection on the authority and government of the diocesan bishop in light of the Second Vatican Council, the Post-Synodal Exhortation on the Bishops Pastores Gregis, the Directory for the pastoral ministry of the bishops Apostolorum Successores and, especially, the magisterium of Pope Francis. This reflection begins with a brief exposition on the etymological, biblical-theological and canonical meaning of the term authority. All of these sources account for a renewed understanding of episcopal authority and power within the conciliar framework of the ecclesiology of communion. Pope Francis, with his peculiar pedagogy, offers a pastoral translation of all that reflection and magisterial dispositions so that the life and ministry of the bishops be truly fruitful and in tune with the council teaching and his pastoral project of renewal of the whole Church, crystallized in the images of an outgoing Church, which be a field hospital and whose doors be open to all.