I turned on the news yesterday morning and heard the most extraordinary thing. The Pope is resigning ! Not a practitioner of the Catholic faith my first question was, can he do that ? Must be, but I've never heard of that before. A quick trip to Google for a little reading. Seems as though the last Pope to resign did so nearly six hundred years ago. No wonder I hadn't heard of that. I read about a few others before that one and it was interesting. One was Pope on three different occasions ! One even sold the position for money and a wife ! But that was all so long ago. A Pope resigning, now that is something to think about.
The Pope is the leader of the Catholic Church we all know that. His influence and power is tremendous. Even those that do not " believe " have to acknowledge that. In the end, he is just a mortal man like all of us. He ages and grows feeble. The burden of office surely weighs heavy upon him. Especially so in these modern times. What with the scandals and declining membership in the church. Changes never come easy. That is doubly so in an organization like the Church. Steeped in tradition and a model to the whole world. The Pope,by his own admission, no longer feels up to the task. I have to admire him for that admission. It cannot be easy for so powerful a man to also be so humble. Truly this act is a sign of humility unmatched in six hundred years. Of course, the job does require working on Sundays and holidays !
Already I have heard some conspiratorial banter on this event. Power plays from inside Vatican city. Big changes in doctrine coming to the church. The effort to install a more liberal Pope. An effort to draw the young people of wealth and power into the fold. I'm sure I will be hearing much more of these theories as time goes on. When the conclave meets to elect a new Pope it will be a nervous time for those of the faith. An awful lot depends upon that outcome. It does have the potential to change the world stage. Whether directly or indirectly it may affect us all.
I hear the ex-Pope, if that is the proper term, will be living in a convent for cloistered Nuns at Vatican City. He will be free to come and go as he pleases. He plans to spend his time praying. What an unusual situation this is. If you accept the figure of twenty years as a generation, this is the first time in thirty generations ! A historic time to be sure. I'll pray for his well being and may he find contentment in his retirement.
The Pope is the leader of the Catholic Church we all know that. His influence and power is tremendous. Even those that do not " believe " have to acknowledge that. In the end, he is just a mortal man like all of us. He ages and grows feeble. The burden of office surely weighs heavy upon him. Especially so in these modern times. What with the scandals and declining membership in the church. Changes never come easy. That is doubly so in an organization like the Church. Steeped in tradition and a model to the whole world. The Pope,by his own admission, no longer feels up to the task. I have to admire him for that admission. It cannot be easy for so powerful a man to also be so humble. Truly this act is a sign of humility unmatched in six hundred years. Of course, the job does require working on Sundays and holidays !
Already I have heard some conspiratorial banter on this event. Power plays from inside Vatican city. Big changes in doctrine coming to the church. The effort to install a more liberal Pope. An effort to draw the young people of wealth and power into the fold. I'm sure I will be hearing much more of these theories as time goes on. When the conclave meets to elect a new Pope it will be a nervous time for those of the faith. An awful lot depends upon that outcome. It does have the potential to change the world stage. Whether directly or indirectly it may affect us all.
I hear the ex-Pope, if that is the proper term, will be living in a convent for cloistered Nuns at Vatican City. He will be free to come and go as he pleases. He plans to spend his time praying. What an unusual situation this is. If you accept the figure of twenty years as a generation, this is the first time in thirty generations ! A historic time to be sure. I'll pray for his well being and may he find contentment in his retirement.
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