Apparently not. "Pope Francis says that when he was 42 he had sessions weekly with a psychoanalyst who was female and Jewish to 'clarify some things.'" [1] Associated Press continued to report in its article entitled POPE SAW PSYCHOANALYST TO SEEK 'CLARITY' YEARS AGO dated September 1, 2017, the following, quoted in part [2]:
It wasn't specified what the future pontiff wanted to explore. The revelation came in a dozen conversations Francis had with French sociologist Dominique Wolton, writing a soon-to-be-published book.
La Stampa, an Italian daily, quoting from some of the conversations on Friday, said Francis went to the analyst's home. Francis was quoted as saying: "one day, when she was about to die, she called me. Not to receive the sacraments, since she was Jewish, but for a spiritual dialogue."
"She was a good person. For six months she helped me a lot," Francis said.
Francis then was a Jesuit official in his native Argentina, which was ruled by military dictatorship.
In the conversations with the French author, Francis speaks highly of the positive influence women have had on his life.
"Those whom I've known helped me a lot when I needed to consult with them," Francis is quoted as saying.
The 80-year-old pope also speaks of his state of mind now. "I feel free. Sure, I'm in a cage here at the Vatican, but not spiritually. Nothing makes me afraid."
What bothers him, he ventured, are people with straitjacket points of view.
He singled out "rigid priests, who are afraid to communicate. It's a form of fundamentalism. Whenever I run into a rigid person, especially if young, I tell myself that he's sick."
Perhaps Bergoglio himself is still sick in ways that are secretive, and if such secrets were revealed publicly, that he did not believe in God and the Blessed Virgin Mary when he was undergoing psychotherapy (speaking speculatively), they would bring the credibility of his entire career as a Catholic priest and the validity of his papacy into question.
Moreover, he seemed to have indicated that there had been women who had exerted influence upon him in his life, and if one of them were the Blessed Virgin Mary, he probably would have mentioned Her, but he did not. He continued to say that "'[t]hose whom I've known helped me a lot when I needed to consult with them.'" [3] Since the Blessed Virgin Mary does not "consult" but simply instructs, it can be concluded that none of the women Bergoglio had consulted with was the Blessed Virgin Mary.
What a shame it is for Catholics to have a pope that seeks psychotherapy rather than pray to God for assistance with whatever that pains him mentally since God's Son, Christ Himself, is the Prince of Peace and as the Prince of Peace, He can deliver interior peace to anyone who seeks it humbly, faithfully and prayerfully. This, Bergoglio did not do. He chose the secular route and sought psychoanalytic help instead.
Did psychoanalysis cure him? This blogger speculates that it did not. Based on his personal perspective, Bergoglio is still sick in the mind, full of dissonance, unable to reconcile his position as pope with his lack of faith in God and the Blessed Virgin Mary. After all, this man had preferred to pray at the tomb of Pope Paul VI, as reported by Vatican Radio on 7 August, 2017, in an article entitled Pope Francis prays at tomb of Pope Paul VI [4], instead of praying before the Crucifix.
The Crucifix is not something the pope always carries around with him (he not being the only exception). Perhaps he should. Perhaps the reason that Bergoglio had to seek "clarity" from a psychoanalyst previously is because he was, and possibly still is, confounded by Satan. Satan is not only good in being deceitful, it is equally good at causing confusion, because when one is confused, one would be unable to see God clearly. Without being able to focus on God with clarity, one is easily under Satan's control. Carrying or wearing the Crucifix would help weaken Satan's influences and deter somewhat Satan's unbridled advances.
When it comes to battling Satan, more effective than just wearing or carrying the Crucifix is saying the rosary that comes with a Crucifix. How often does Bergoglio say the rosary? Certainly, that should not be a secret unless Bergoglio has a truth to hide. If he says the rosary once daily, or several times a day, what harm would it do if he told the world if indeed that is the truth? Would it not inspire the many Catholics who revere him, perhaps even more than Christ, to do the same? What is he afraid of?
Is transparency that leads to the truth not what he wants in the Vatican, or is he comfortable with being secretive, like hiding behind his own secret "confessions" to his Jewish psychoanalyst, despite knowing that one cannot hide one's truths from God?
The one truth that Bergoglio had not kept hidden is his own admission to having had psychotherapy, which says to the world that he deemed it more effective than prayer, which is sad.
[1] http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_REL_VATICAN_POPE_PSYCHOANALYST?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2017-09-01-12-36-36
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.
[4] http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/08/07/pope_francis_prays_at_tomb_of_pope_paul_vi/1329286
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