--- title: "Book Notes: \"What Pope Francis Really Said\" by Tom Hoopes" description: "Tom Hoopes' book \"What Pope Francis Really Said\" unpacks the truth behind the media's rush to judgment. Barb Szyszkiewicz recommends the book to all Catholics committed to defending and living out the" --- [![catholic-mom-logo-v2](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/images/catholic-mom-logo-v2.svg "catholic-mom-logo-v2")](https://www.catholicmom.com/) [![facebook](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-facebook.svg)](http://www.facebook.com/CatholicMomCommunity) [![twitter](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-twitter.svg)](http://twitter.com/CatholicMomCom) [![instagram](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-instagram.svg)](http://instagram.com/catholicmomcommunity) [![youtube](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-youtube.svg)](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAuUqHCVPDzyMgSMaMZxxug?view_as=subscriber) [![search-icon](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/search-icon.svg)](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/2016/12/12/book-notes-pope-francis-really-said-tom-hoopes#) # Book Notes: "What Pope Francis Really Said" by Tom Hoopes Dec 12, 2016 3:00:40 PM  |  by [Barb Szyszkiewicz](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/author/barb-szyszkiewicz-ofs) [![Book-Notes-720-x-340-dark-gold-outline-and-medium-blue-pen-_-Notes-light-blue-702x336](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Book-Notes-720-x-340-dark-gold-outline-and-medium-blue-pen-_-Notes-light-blue-702x336-235.png?width=702&height=336&name=Book-Notes-720-x-340-dark-gold-outline-and-medium-blue-pen-_-Notes-light-blue-702x336-235.png)](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Book-Notes-720-x-340-dark-gold-outline-and-medium-blue-pen-_-Notes-light-blue-702x336-235.png) Every time Pope Francis writes an encyclical or makes an off-the-cuff remark on an airplane, the media (both Catholic and secular) jump all over it with various interpretations. That's a problem, states Tom Hoopes, author of ***[What Pope Francis Really Said](http://www.amazon.com/o/ASIN/1632530503/catholicmom)*** (Servant, 2016). Depending on your news source (or who you follow on Twitter and Facebook) you'll get wildly different versions of the same wrong story. Add in our lack of critical-reading skills and our willingness to accept "fake news" at face value and you wind up with a great deal of confusion about the Pope's teachings and motivations. > He is celebrated by some for saying things he never said and rejected by others for doing things they don't really understand (ix). That airplane photo on the cover isn't just a convenient file photo. It's a symbol of the world's eagerness to take one sentence out of an entire speech and make a huge (and often hugely inaccurate) news story out of it. The problem is not that Pope Francis holds news conferences on airplanes. The problem lies in what people do with the statements he makes. [![Print](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/what-pope-francis-really-said-1.jpg?width=663&height=1024&name=what-pope-francis-really-said-1.jpg)](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/what-pope-francis-really-said-1.jpg) I can't remember so much attention being paid to things previous popes said and wrote. It's good, because the world (including the Catholic world) is watching and learning, but it's challenging, because it's so easy to take things out of context. I eagerly read Hoopes' book because I find myself having to say, "That's not what he said" *way* too many times when the subject of Pope Francis comes up! [Tweet "Careful unpacking of Pope Francis' teaching by @TomHoopes. Book review by @franciscanmom"] Tom Hoopes traces Pope Francis' papacy chronologically, from a speech then-Cardinal Bergoglio made in the conclave to the World Meeting of Families in the fall of 2015. Beginning with the retelling of the Gospel story in which Jesus heals a woman on the Sabbath and is vilified by the leaders of the synagogue for doing so, Hoopes mentions that Jesus refuses to be "stage-managed by what officialdom is asking him to do and instead [turns] his attention to those who are looking to have a real encounter with him." (2) Pope Francis operates in much the same way. Hoopes assures readers who have painted the Pope as "too liberal" of Pope Francis' unswerving commitment to the dignity of marriage and the right to life, while reminding those who believe he's "too conservative" that Pope Francis decries the violence that begets more violence and often leads to war. Hoopes also mentions that Pope Francis is not saying anything new. He paraphrases the Catechism of the Catholic Church, echoes Popes John Paul II and Benedict, and frequently references Scripture. In a fast-paced world with a second-by-second news cycle that reduces entire speeches to 140-character tidbits, Catholics need to read ***[What Pope Francis Really Said](http://www.amazon.com/o/ASIN/1632530503/catholicmom)*** to catch up on the truth behind what Pope Francis has said in the past so that they can be prepared to defend, and live out, what the Pope says in the future. **Buy this book through our Amazon link and support CatholicMom.com with your purchase!** **Be sure to check out [our Book Notes archive](http://catholicmom.com/category/book-notes/).** *Copyright 2016 Barb Szyszkiewicz, OFS* ### Share this article [![Share on Facebook](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/facebook-24x24.png)](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2F2016%2F12%2F12%2Fbook-notes-pope-francis-really-said-tom-hoopes%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook) [![Share on Twitter](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/twitter-24x24.png)](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2F2016%2F12%2F12%2Fbook-notes-pope-francis-really-said-tom-hoopes%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2F2016%2F12%2F12%2Fbook-notes-pope-francis-really-said-tom-hoopes%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&source=tweetbutton&text=Book%20Notes%3A%20%22What%20Pope%20Francis%20Really%20Said%22%20by%20Tom%20Hoopes) [![Share on Email](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/email-24x24.png)](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2F2016%2F12%2F12%2Fbook-notes-pope-francis-really-said-tom-hoopes%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail%20&body=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2F2016%2F12%2F12%2Fbook-notes-pope-francis-really-said-tom-hoopes%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail) ** #### About the Author ![Barb Szyszkiewicz](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/BSzyszkiewicz%202022.jpg) ### [Barb Szyszkiewicz](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/author/barb-szyszkiewicz-ofs) Barb Szyszkiewicz, senior editor at [CatholicMom.com](http://catholicmom.com), is a wife, mom of 3 young adults, and a Secular Franciscan. Barb enjoys writing, cooking, and reading, and is a music minister at her parish. Find her blog at [FranciscanMom](http://franciscanmom.com) and her family’s favorite recipes with nutrition information at [Cook and Count](http://cookandcount.wordpress.com). Barb is the author of *[The Handy Little Guide to Prayer](https://amzn.to/2LQB2oL)* and * [The Handy Little Guide to the Liturgy of the Hours](https://amzn.to/3wbDB8k)*, available from Our Sunday Visitor. ## Related Blog Articles [ Book Notes: A Contemplative Look at Winter Read ](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/book-notes-a-contemplative-look-at-winter) [ Book Notes: 4 Books for Young Readers from Pauline Books & Media Read ](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/2016/12/05/book-notes-4-books-young-readers-pauline-books-media) [ Holy Week Book Notes featuring Saint Mary Magdalene Read ](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/2017/04/10/holy-week-book-notes-featuring-saint-mary-magdalene) ## Comments ## Donate now [![Support Catholic Mom](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/275132/10016573-1c5c-4aa5-baba-c2ac91fe7545.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/275132/10016573-1c5c-4aa5-baba-c2ac91fe7545) [![CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c (002)](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c%20(002).png?width=1806&height=731&name=CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c%20(002).png "CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c (002)")](https://www.catholicmom.com/) ##### Subscribe to Catholic Momcast on iTunes or Spotify [![itunes-logo-black](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/logos/itunes-logo-black.svg)](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/catholic-momcast/id1362352357)[![spotify-logo-black](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/logos/spotify-logo-black.svg)](https://open.spotify.com/show/15CoipHL7z61IDcYErV0b8?si=hqaQJSxDQgq7S1hxCwsoxQ) ##### CatholicMom on Social Networks [![facebook](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-facebook.svg)](http://www.facebook.com/CatholicMomCommunity) [![twitter](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-twitter.svg)](http://twitter.com/CatholicMomCom) [![instagram](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-instagram.svg)](http://instagram.com/catholicmomcommunity) [![youtube](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-youtube.svg)](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAuUqHCVPDzyMgSMaMZxxug?view_as=subscriber) ##### About Catholic Mom [Who We Are](https://www.catholicmom.com/about-us) [Contact Us](https://www.catholicmom.com/contact) [Support CatholicMom.com](https://www.catholicmom.com/support-us)   ##### Associated Links [Holy Cross Family Ministries](https://www.hcfm.org/) [Family Rosary](https://www.familyrosary.org/) [Family Theater Productions](https://www.familytheater.org/) [Congregation of the Holy Cross](https://www.holycrossusa.org/) [Father Patrick Peyton, C.S.C.](https://www.fatherpeyton.org/) [The Peyton Institute for Domestic Church Life](https://www.peytonfamilyinstitute.org/) ### **Stay connected!** Don’t miss a thing! 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