( CNN ) -- Franklin D. Roosevelt had his Hundred Days . Papa Francesco has had a little less than a month . Yet , like FDR , he has used bold gestures to alert the world that things in the Catholic Church would not be returning to business as usual . For Catholics , images conveyed in a genuine way can be symbols of deeper realities . We are a sacramental church . God speaks to us through his word , but that word is often accompanied by ritual , gesture and symbol . Pope Francis really believes in simplicity . So far , he has waved off any vestige of opulence ( gold pectoral crosses and ermine lined mantles ) , walks rather than rides in a chauffeured limo , and for now at least refuses to live in the Apostolic Palace ( a complex oxymoron , what apostle ever lived in a palace ? ) . He chooses to live in a less pretentious guest house . He invokes the patron saint of evangelical poverty , St. Francis , but this also comes from his Jesuit formation . The vow of poverty and the commitment to the poor is taken seriously among the Sons of Loyolaâ€ ” at least the ones I know . Forming young people to be `` men and women for others '' is not an idle slogan for a lamppost banner . Jesuits really do it and do it well . Pope Francis washes youths ' feet at detention center . This may seem to the cynical a mere show or public relations , and a few of those cynics are in the church . But something tells me this is the real thing . This is how he lived in Buenos Aires . He could have had a palace and all the accoutrements of fine living , and yet he chose something elseâ€ ” something simple , and closer to the people he wished to serve . On Thursday , he washed the feet of young juvenile offenders at a detention center in Rome . Among them were two women ; one of them was a Muslim . Let Catholics around the world take note . I can only marvel at this generous and loving gesture . But in Catholic life , rituals are usually accompanied by words . Sometimes the words are difficult to understand or are prayed in flat and boring tones as though the celebrant does n't believe them . But when word and ritual come together in the best way , it can strike fire in human hearts . Pope Francis has uttered some marvelous words to accompany his actions . To his frail predecessor , `` We are brothers . '' To the gardeners and janitors of the Vatican , `` If we have a closed heart , we have a heart of stone . '' To priests , an exhortation to `` pray over the realities of the everyday lives '' of their parishioners , and `` their troubles , their joys , their burdens and their hopes . '' To the young people at the prison , `` Help one another . This is what Jesus teaches us . This is what I do and I do it with my heart . '' Why did the pope wash prisoners ' feet ? Simple , direct words from the heart of a pastorâ€ ” words people can and will remember because they are accompanied by actions . Eventually , the novelty of all this will fade , but the tasks ahead for the Catholic Church will not . Repairing its shattered credibility , especially with the young , will be awaiting Pope Francis each morning with his coffee . Who will advise him ? What kinds of men will he choose as bishops ? How strong will he be in the face of certain opposition within and outside the church ? We will see . `` Francis , rebuild my church , '' said the Lord to the Poverello of Assisi . Pope Francis I 'm sure also hears this same , `` small , still , voice . '' But perhaps we are in for even more surprises . The new pontiff has yet to complete the ritual of taking possession of his four basilicas in Rome . These highly ritualized events are accompanied by droves of cardinals and other clerics and offer the pope an occasion to say a few words to mark the occasion . Opinion : Pope Francis ' humble superiority . It was during one such ceremony in January 1959 , at St. Paul Outside the Walls , that Pope John XXIII shocked the world by calling for an ecumenical council . Could Pope Francis do the same ? If he did , another Roosevelt -- Teddy -- might say , `` Bully ! `` So would I . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Steven Avella .
Steven Avella : Pope Francis has used bold gestures to signal changes to come . Avella : Francis believes in simplicity and has embodied it in his actions and words . When words and rituals come together well , it can strike fire in human hearts , he says . Avella : Francis faces many challenges ahead , like repairing the church 's credibility .