BENEDICT XVI: NEWS, PAPAL TEXTS, PHOTOS AND COMMENTARY

ALWAYS AND EVER OUR MOST BELOVED BENEDICTUS XVI

I don't know if the changes took place promptly at 8:01 pm Rome time last night, but by the time I had the wits to check it out two hours later, the changes were in place on the Vatican site. BENEDICTUS XVI no longer occupies center spot but is on a side menu, the Lent 2012 banner that had an image of him has been replaced with a plain one, and in the section on the Supreme Pontiffs, the end date has been added to his Pontificate. I think there should be a parenthetical to sau he renounced it, otherwise nothing distinguishes the date from the end-of-pontificate date for his predecessors which is also the date of their death.





But there's also this bonus 62-page e-book on the Vatican site that has excellent pictures, with the text coming from various discourses and homilies of Benedict XVI:


www.vatican.va/bxvi/omaggio/index_en.html

My only problem with the e=book is not a minor one - the cover carries the official portrait of Benedict XVI that has graced all the Nunciatures and dioceses of the world (the portrait probably were taken down yesterday) - which used a photograph taken before Benedict XVI was formally installed as Pope and had received the Ring of the Fisherman, so he is conspicuously wearing his cardinal's ring. I pointed this out once before during the 5th anniversary of his Pontificate, but now the Pontificate has come and gone, and the Vatican obviously did nothing about it, i.e., no one would seem to have noticed at all, or if they did, they did not care. But it's not a 'minor' anomaly at all! How ironical that this most photogenic of Popes ended up with an 'anomalous' official portrait! But then those in charge of Vatican communications appear to be totally indifferent in their choice of the photographs they have used for B16, when they have thousands of excellent photos to choose from...

I thought before anything else, looking to making up for my utter inability to cope yesterday, this has to be the first news of the day on the first day of the Pope-emeritus era. Frankly I was not expecting any news at all...

Emeritus Pope slept well -
watched TV last night,
said Mass this morning


VATICAN CITY, March 1 (Translated from ANSA) - "I had a nice telephone chat with do Georg (Gaenswein) this morning - he was very relaxed, he said that the Holy Father slept well last night, as did he", Fr. Federico Lombardi told newsmen at his briefing today. [Fr. Lombardi still refers to Benedict XVI as 'Santo Padre', out of habit, I suppose].

He said Benedict XVI's first full day as emeritus Pope started with saying 7 a.m. Mass as usual, then he prayed Lauds (morning prayers if the Daily Office observed by priests) and had breakfast.

The rest of the day will be spent in meditation and prayer, but he will also review messages he has received. In the afternoon, he will most likely take his afternoon walk in the gardens of Castel Gandolfo, praying the rosary with Mons. Gaenswein following their usual habit.

Last night, Mons. Gaenswein told Fr. Lombardi, the emeritus Pope watched TV news of the day's events and "he appreciated the presentations.

Fr, Lombardi also said that Benedict XVI brought various books with him to Castel Gandolfo on theology, history, etc, including one on Hans Urs von Balthasar's theological aesthetics.

The cardinals gathering in Rome for the conclave will hold their first two general congregations on Monday morning and afternoon.

But Fr. Lombardi said, "Don't expect them to come up with a date for the Conclave that day".

Vatican Radio had this account of the conversation with Mons. Gaenswein, as given in English by Fr. Thomas Sorica who is helping out Fr. Lombardi during the sede vacante and the initial days of the next Pontificate:

“We spoke with [Archbishop] Georg Ganswein this morning,” he said, “and he told us that [the Pope emeritus] had a very good night’s sleep.”

Fr. Rosica went on to explain that the Pope – who has been playing the piano in the evenings of late, and is expected to return to continue that pastime in his retirement – on Thursday evening rather viewed two Italian newscasts on television.

Fr. Rosica also relayed that, in the evening, after supper and time at prayer, Benedict read some of the many messages that have come to him from well-wishers.

Friday began with Mass at 7 AM, and was expected to involve quiet time, as well as a walk on the grounds of the retreat around 4 PM, during which the Pope was expected to recite his Rosary.

Fr. Rosica also spoke of the reading material that Benedict has brought with him – including works ranging across the fields of theology, spirituality and history.

Also announced during the press briefing was news that the Vatican Post Office already has the stamps on sale to mark the sede vacante period, however, have yet to be minted and will likely not be ready until May. [By which time they should be minting coins for the next Pope!]

I still am giddy with awe at the declarations made yesterday by Benedict XVI - statements only he could have made - "I pledge my unconditional reverence and obedience to the next Pope" [he was not expected to make any formal remarks at all at his last meeting with the cardinals, but he chose to, in order to urge them to unity as they make their choice, and to set the example for the duty they owe to his successor], and then in Castel Gandolfo, "I am now just a pilgrim on the last stage of his journey through life...". A

And now, the unexpected bonus of this interview he gave back in 2001. It shows once again how remarkably consistent this good and wise and humble man has been all his life. His last response here foreshadows and reflects the rationale for his decision to do what had been unthinkable for modern Popes...

From the archives:
A chat with Cardinal Ratzinger

March 1, 2013

Vatican Radio’s Antonella Palermo had the opportunity to speak with Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger prior to his election to the papacy. At the time, Cardinal Ratzinger was head of the Vatican office for the Doctrine of the Faith. In the following interview (conducted in Italian) from our archives, we see a more personal side to the man who, when named pontiff in 2005, was widely portrayed as austere and inflexible on matters of the Church.

Palermo spoke to the then-Cardinal Ratzinger shortly after the release in Italy of the book “God and the World” , an in-depth conversation between the Cardinal and German journalist Peter Seewald – published two days after the September 11th attacks on the United States in 2001.

At the time Cardinal Ratzinger spoke to Palermo, the U.S.-led war against terrorism in Afghanistan had entered its second month. The interview gives some insight into the new Pope’s ideas on Just War theory – when a nation or an individual not only has the right but the duty to defend human life and human rights. [Vatican Radio has provided the English translation of the excerpts heard in the audio-tape].

Your book came out in Italy two days after the terrorist attacks in the USA. If it had come out a little bit later, what would you have added in hindsight?
CARDINAL RATZINGER: I would probably say that abusing the name of God would have been the problem, because these attacks were carried out in the name of God. Religion here is being abused for other ends; it has been politicized and made a factor of power.

On the other hand, perhaps I would have spoken more about the need to know God’s human face. If we see Christ’s face, our Lord who suffers for us and showed how much He loved us in dying for us, we have a vision of God that excludes all forms of violence.

And so it is Christ’s face that seems to me to be the perfect answer to the abuse of a God who is turned into an instrument of our power.

Is there any such thing as a “Just War”?
This is a major issue of concern. In the preparation of the Catechism, there were two problems - the death penalty and Just War theory - that were the most debated. The debate has taken on new urgency given the response of the Americans. Or, another example: Poland which defended itself against Hitler.

I’d say that we cannot ignore, in the great Christian tradition and in a world marked by sin, any evil aggression that threatens to destroy not only many values, many people, but the image of humanity itself . In this case, defending oneself and others is a duty.

Let’s say for example that a father who sees his family attacked is duty-bound to defend them in every way possible – even if that means using proportional violence. Thus, the Just War problem is defined according to these parameters:

1. Everything must be conscientiously considered, and every alternative explored if there is even just one possibility to save human life and values;

2. Only the most necessary means of defence should be used and human rights must always be respected; in such a war the enemy must be respected as a human being and all fundamental rights must be respected.

I think that the Christian tradition on this point has provided answers that must be updated on the basis of new methods of destruction and of new dangers. For example, there may be no way for a population to defend itself from an atomic bomb. So, these must be updated. But I’d say that we cannot totally exclude the need, the moral need, to suitably defend people and values against unjust aggressors.

In the interview, the then-Cardinal Ratzinger also shows his more personal side, and reveals some of his thoughts on what he sees as a tendency in the world to shut out the Church , and to put God into our own mold.

As a Christian in the new millennium, are you ever afraid of God?
I am not afraid of God because God is good. Naturally I recognize my weaknesses, my sins, and know these can wound the Lord who cares for us so deeply. I suppose that in this sense I’m afraid of how my actions will affect God – something quite different from the traditional understanding of fear. In this sense, I am not afraid of God; I revere the Lord and so I wouldn’t want to do anything that would harm Him.

An expression that is sadly used today is “God yes, Church no” In this book you respond to that with a note of concern. Can you clarify this?
Yes, because by saying “God yes, or perhaps even Christ yes, Church no” I create a God, based on what I want Him to be, based on my own ideas and desires. The true God, the real judge of my being and the true light of my life, lives in me. God is not changeable according to my ideas or desires. If I can change this God according to my needs and wishes, it means I don’t take Him seriously and I find this artificial.

You speak in the book also about a tendency to agree with the expression “God no, religion yes”.
This is another aspect of the problem today: we look for something religious, something religious that gives us a certain degree of satisfaction. Humanity wants to understand the infinite, to have the answers about that other dimension, that “other side” that exudes the sweetness and hope that material things cannot give. I really think this is a big trend today: separating yourself from the need of faith, from a concrete “yes” to God that is full of meaning. People are looking more for immediate satisfaction without the need to truly commit themselves. While it can be very nice to enter into this mystical dimension - without any commitment - you end up merely satisfying immediate wants and you are imprisoned in your sense of self.

And what would Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger say about himself if he had to paint a self portrait?
A self portrait would be impossible; it’s difficult to judge oneself. I can only say that I come from a very simple, very humble family, and therefore I don’t really feel like a Cardinal. I feel I am simply a man. In Germany I live in a small town with people who work in agriculture, handicrafts and there I feel I am at home.

At the same time I try to be that way in my work/office/post. If I succeed, I am not one to say. I always remember with great affection the profound goodness of my father and mother, and naturally for me goodness implies also the ability to say “no” – because any goodness that lets anything go cannot be good for another.

Sometimes goodness can also mean saying “no” and therefore one risks sounding contradictory. But even this must be truly nourished not by a sense of power, of vindication, but it must come from the ultimate goodness: from the desire to do good to others. These are my criteria, this is my background – others must add to it what they wish.

I have been remiss in posting how L'Osservatore Romano has reported on these epochal days. These pages from the last three days (issues of 12/28, 3/1 and 3/2, respectively, attest to their coverage. I can only show the pages now - translations of the major articles will come later.


2/28/13 issue - with reportage on the last GA:



3/01/13 issue - with reportage on the last meeting with the cardinals, and a 4-page special on 'Eight years of a Pontificate':




3/02/13 issue - with reportage on the transfer to Castel Gandolfo and B16's last words in public as Pope:

There's a wealth of newsphotos from yesterday that I have only begun to skim and copy, but I thought I would post this now because I think Mons. Gaenswein's emotions may best approach our own at this poingnant end to the pontificate of Benedict XVI. {And yet, he of all people will continue to be the closest person to our Papa Bene - and long may he continue to care for him so lovingly.}

Many italian newspapers took the time to capture these images from the brief video that showed Benedict XVI getting out of the elevator from the papal apartment to the nattow hallway that leads to the San Damaso entrance of the Apostolic Palace yesterday afternoon. This series came from Corriere della Sera which entitled it 'Padre Georg si e commosso' (Padre Georg is moved to tears)...

Mons. Georg
is moved to tears

On his last day as Pope,
Benedict’s character shone through
by EDWARD PENTIN


VATICAN CITY, March 1, 2013 — Benedict XVI’s final moments as Pope yesterday were in keeping with his simple, understated character.

There was no drama, no long speeches or self-indulgence — simply an acceptance of a reality and a prevailing sense of trust that Christ is at the heart of the Church, sentiments Benedict expressed to cardinals earlier in the day.

As dusk fell at the end of a second day of unseasonably beautiful weather in Rome, a medium-sized crowd had gathered in St. Peter’s Square to follow the Pope’s departure on large video monitors. Almost no voices could be heard, and, apart from the whirring of a police helicopter overhead, the square was unusually silent, even somber.

But shortly before 5pm, cheers erupted as the screens on the square began showing the Pope walking slowly through the corridors of the Apostolic Palace with the aid of a cane. He was accompanied by his closest aides.

On emerging into the San Damaso courtyard, he greeted staff from the Secretariat of State, saying farewell to Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican secretary of state, and a number of other senior officials.

The bells of St. Peter’s Basilica and other churches began to peal as the Holy Father was driven the short distance to the Vatican helipad, where he said a final farewell to Cardinal Angelo Sodano, dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Giovanni Lajolo, president emeritus of the governorate of the Vatican city state, and heads of the Vatican police. One more final wave, and the Pope boarded the Italian military helicopter for the 15-minute flight to Castel Gandolfo.

[Was I imagining it or did those Roman bells peal for at least 15 minutes, during the entire length of the helicopter flight to Castel Gandolfo? Bells speak - they either peal for joy or toll for grief. I heard them yesterday as a celebration of this exceptional man, a living saint and future Doctor of the Church, and his brief but great Pontificate. I think they pealedlonger yesterday than they did when he was elected Pope.]

Accompanying Benedict on his final journey as Pope were his personal secretaries Archbishop Georg Gänswein and Msgr. Alfred Xuereb; along with Msgr. Leonardo Sapienza, the deputy prefect of the papal household; Dr. Patrizio Polisca, the pope’s personal physician; and Sandro Mariotti, Benedict’s butler. [VALET! Will you guys never learn???]

As the chopper gently lifted off, it then quickly gained altitude and took a circuitous route around Rome to give as many people as possible a chance to say their own farewells. As it flew over St. Peter’s Square, several thousand well-wishers cheered and waved one last time.

Among those present in the square was Cardinal Seán O’Malley, the archbishop of Boston.

“It’s very moving to see how much this man is loved and will be missed,” he said. “It’s a beautiful gesture these people have shown to come here and personally bid him farewell.”

Followed by a second helicopter, operated by a Vatican television crew, everyone, including those in the square watching on large screens, was able to follow the Pope’s entire journey as it flew low into the hazy, yellow-ochre sunset, over the Colosseum and the many other ancient landmarks of Rome.

Many praised the footage of the event, managed by the new director of Vatican television, filmmaker Msgr. Edoardo Vigano. The coverage was “tremendous,” Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi, said today, “because they involved us and the whole world in the beautiful story that unfolded yesterday. … We’re very grateful to them for what they did.”

On arrival in Castel Gandolfo, the Pope was driven the short distance from the helipad to the Apostolic Palace, where a crowd of 7,000 people were waiting to greet him. Minutes later, he appeared on the balcony and thanked the throng.

“I am happy to be with you, surrounded by the beauty of creation and your sympathy that does so much good for me. Thank you for your friendship and love,” the Pope said at around 5:30pm from the balcony of his villa.

“You know that today is different than previous ones. I’m no longer the pope. Until 8pm I am, but then, afterwards, I am no longer Pope of the Catholic Church,” he said.

Benedict then offered a window into how he sees this stage of his life.

“I’m simply a pilgrim who is starting the last stage of his pilgrimage on earth,” he remarked, “but I would still like with my heart, with my love, with my prayer, with my reflection, with all my inner strength to work for the common good of the Church and of humanity, and I feel very supported by your sympathy."

“Let’s go ahead together with the Lord for the good of the Church and of the world,” he said as he finished his brief greeting.

Pope Benedict XVI then gave his last papal blessing to the crowd.

“Thank you. And now I impart to you the Lord’s blessing with my whole heart. May God bless you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Thank you and good night. Thanks to all of you.”

Michael Severance, a resident who watched the events unfold, said the mood in the Bernini-designed town square of the papal summer residence “was anything but sullen.”

“The vibe was actually electric: A few thousand of us rushed over from the nearby town of Albano after 5pm and chanted in rhythm Be-ne-det-to! one last time as the helicopter swirled above our heads,” he recalled. “Other locals sounded loud musical instruments, waved flags and hoisted banners of affection. And we all brought rosaries and other religious objects for one last blessing.”

“It was an arrivederci fit for a king,” he said.

At 8pm Rome time, a loud bell then rang eight times. The crowd shouted Viva il Papa! (“Long live the Pope!”). The Swiss Guards entered Castel Gandolfo and hung up their ceremonial halberds on the inner walls, as there is no longer a sitting pope for them to protect.

They then closed the two large doors and bolted them shut, symbolizing the definitive end of Pope Benedict XVI’s pontificate.

The Swiss Guards departed, and three Vatican gendarmes dressed in black uniforms marched to the inside of the gates, stood guard and saluted.

Witnessing such an historic and momentous moment will be unforgettable for many of those present.

“Even the small children, including three of my own, were aware of the historic moment,” said Severance, who works at the Acton Institute in Rome. “Many of our families would see him several times from July to October in the intimacy of his courtyard on Sundays and have their bambini blessed by Benedict.”

“We will all dearly miss him as our summer neighbor for the last eight years,” he added. “This was the only pain we felt, while happy and confident in his decision to retire to prayer and study.”

Reflecting on how he thought Benedict XVI will be remembered, Cardinal O’Malley told the Register, “As Benedict the teacher, the man who was able to break open the word of God for all of us in such a wonderful way and touch our hearts with the message of the Gospel.”



Interim Governance

At a Vatican press conference today, video footage was shown of the sealing of the papal apartments in the Vatican. Beginning at 8pm yesterday evening, Cardinal Bertone, now camerlengo (chamberlain, supervisor of the apostolic chamber) — an office that comes to life during the period sede vacante — said a prayer before proceeding to seal the rooms.

The film showed the seal, complete with the crest of the interregnum, being applied to a private elevator the pope uses to move from his apartments to public rooms and the main doors of the apartments.

Cardinal Bertone was seen holding a stick in his hand, called the ferrula, which is a sign of authority belonging to the chamberlain. Today at 12:30, the doors of the Lateran Palace were also sealed by the vice chamberlain, Archbishop Pier Luigi Celata.

The Vatican said that the Curia is now being run by the sostituto at the Secretariat of State, Archbishop Giovanni Angelo Becciu.

Father Lombardi revealed today that Benedict XVI enjoyed a “good night’s sleep.” Both he and Archbishop Gänswein had dinner and then watched two Italian TV newscasts of the day’s events. They then said their regular evening prayers, after which Benedict XVI then read many messages and went for a walk through corridors and some of the great reception rooms of the palace overlooking the lake.

Today, the pope emeritus celebrated Mass as usual at 7am and has been spending time praying the Rosary in the Vatican Gardens, as he usually does. Father Lombardi also said Benedict brought books with him on theology and the history of the Church. One particular title that caught Archbishop Gänswein’s eyes was a book Benedict purchased when it first came out: Theological Aesthetics by Hans Urs von Balthasar.

Father Lombardi also said that in the weeks leading up to his departure, Benedict played piano every evening after dinner. “You can probably be sure he’ll take up that habit again in Castel Gandolfo,” he said.

In the meantime, work has begun in earnest to prepare for the upcoming conclave. Cardinal Angelo Sodano has officially notified all cardinals that the Apostolic See is vacant. He said the first general congregation will take place at 9:30am March 4, with a second session in the afternoon. Daily meetings will continue until all electors are accounted for and a conclave date has ben set.

Father Lombardi said one should not expect a date for the conclave to be set on Monday, as cardinals need to talk a little before agreeing on when it should take place.

Thank you for all your work during all these years. We'll come back here often to see him again and re read all this

Leaving the Vatican Apostolic Palace for the last time








At Castel Gandolfo




His last event as Pope
















Our last glimpse of him, till who knows when?

At 8:00 PM, the bells ring the hour, the Swiss Guard lay down their arms and go off duty, and the doors of Castel Gandolfo are closed. The Pontificate of Benedict XVI is over after seven years, ten months, nine days, and two hours...



Formalities at the Vatican



Cardinal Bertone, as Papal Chamberlain (Camerlengo), convenes his Apostolic Commission for the first time and proceeds to lock and seal the papal apartment in the Apostolic Palace.


LIGHTS OUT
The See of Peter is vacant




A brief but moving video from RAI sums up the poignancy of the last day:
www.rainews24.rai.it/it/video.php?id=32725

flo_51, 02/03/2013 11:57:

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Thank you for all your work during all these years. We'll come back here often to see him again and re read all this

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IT'S TERRIBLE!!!!! I CAN'T STOP CRYING...

The nature of news being what it is, one of the most difficult concrete prospects of Benedict XVI's Pope-emeritus life is that, as soon as he officially retired, he would mostly be not just out of sight to the media as to the rest of the world, but out of their mind and the public mind, as well, unless it was to dredge up something bad to say about him. And that is why it is important for those like us to keep the flames burning, keep his name alive and relevant, even if only among us, and we are truly fortunate that we have such an enormous wealth of written material and images to work through.

Already today, a survey of any of the Catholic sites that collate current 'headines', there is hardly a mention of Benedict XVI, and what news there is of the Church is already focused on the coming Conclave. But there had been a real flood of articles and comentaries, and even more than a handful of instant books, at least in Italy and France. so far.

So it was quite a pleasure to find the following article written a year ago by a veteran Vaticanista, whose political readings of Church developments - such as curial appointments and cardinal nominations I have often disagreed with - but who has always managed to present a correct spiritual reading of Benedict XVI's actions and words, and has not hesitated to present it as often as he can, even at the most unexpected moments (such as the Pope's pastoral visits within Italy, which even Catholic media often cover perfunctorily). He wrote this commentary in connection with the preparatory note to the Synodal Assembly on the New Evangelization. I Include my reaction to the commentary at the time....







Benedict XVI's revolution
Translated from


February 27, 2012

Rarely in the mass media is there any mention of the 'revolutionary' import of this Pontificate.

But in the bimillennial history of the Church, this Pontificate will be remembered as that of the return to the roots of the Faith - to the Ten Commandments and to the Gospel.

In short, simple words, dense with significance, that find a profound echo in the hearts of men, in any time.

Bo not steal. Do not kill. Precepts that everyone can accept and make his own regardless of his cultural and social affiliations.

Joseph Ratzinger, besides being the 265th Pope, will pass into history as one of the most important theologians of the 20th century. As an academic and writer, the theologian-pastor-Pope has dedicated all his life to theology and preaching.

It is therefore highly significant that Benedict XVI has decreed a Year of Faith.

Today, the Holy See issued a clear-sounding note from the Secretariat of the Bishops' Synod on the most recent Synodal Council meeting preparatory to the Synodal Assembly at the Vatican next October.

Its contents have a pure Ratzingerian ring and constitute almost a 'mea culpa' from the universal Church for having focused its evangelizing mission on a premise that has been too intellectual and ever less evangelically understandable to the faithful.

And that is why the mission should start from the basics: the Ten Commandments and the Gospel. An appeal that is also an invitation to conversion, at a time when the Roman Curia appears beset by conflicts among rival groups and perceived financial scandals.

The Synod document today denounces "the unproductiveness of current evangelization, especially in the presence of influences from the current dominant culture which make transmission of the faith particularly difficult and also represent at a challenge to Christians and the Church".

In short, the crisis of the faith which so concerns the Catholic Church is also "a crisis in the transmission of the faith itself".

In this regard, the Year of Faith will be "a propitious occasion to examine more deeply the gift of faith received from the Lord,to be lived and transmitted to others".

And "the first place for the transmission of the faith should be the family, where the faith is communicated to the children who, within the family, should learn both the contents of the Christian faith as well as its practice".

Galeazzi joins a handful of Italian commentators who have, at one time or other, pointed out the quiet revolution that Benedict XVI is carrying out - among them, Sandro Magister, Mssimo Introvigne. Andrea Tornielli, Luigi Accattoli and Giuliano Ferrara. Those attentive to the constant, consistent and cumulative effect of the daily words and actions - spontaneous but also consciously (and perhaps subconsciously) directed at fulfilling Joseph Ratzinger's lifelong ministry as a priest, now magnified unimaginably by his Petrine ministry: to bring God to all men, and all men to God...

And if few have recognized, much less acknowledged, what he has done and sought to do in the past seven years, perhaps it is because his ways are simple, unspectacular, non-theatrical, low-key - everything that is bound to be easily overlooked and grossly undervalued in an age of show-and-tell, of image above substance, of abracadabra and smoke-and-mirrors, of relentless self-promotion...

Since he is Joseph Ratzinger, everything we have come to know about him says he does not care that the messenger is overlooked and undervalued - he does not need to be validated by others, only by his Lord - as long as his message hits home. God bless the Church, the Pope, his bishops and all his priests that they may work tirelessly, joyously and effectively to bring God and his message of love and salvation to the world today...

A day before Galeazzi's article, Luigi Accattoli wrote the following for Corriere della Sera. Remember these were the initial weeks of the Vatileaks disclousres, even if the book was not come out until May. I have included my commentary on the Vatileaks brouhaha at that early stage...




The Pope is more severe with
the Church than his critics are -
and for the right reasons
by Luigi Accattoli
Translated from

February 26, 2012

[La Lettura is the Sunday magazine of Corriere della Sera.]

The Catholic Church is in crisis - so the media loudly proclaim, and the custodians of the temple admit it.

But what is the crisis? There are conflicting opinions among analysts as among the protagonists.

As are the opinions on the chattering of the crows from the Vatican in the past few weeks. Some speak of a crisis of the Christian faith in general. some of the decadence of the historical Church, or of the European Churches, or of the Church leadership, or of Curial government. The newspapers are focused on the latter. [No news there! The media have an irremediable obsession with the trivial and the seemingly serious, and a chronic aversion for the truly serious.]

We have the curious situation of a Pope who says more about what's wrong with the Church than his own critics, who - like Hans Kueng or the 'We are Church' movement - say that things would never be so bad if only the Church had the courage to undertake some reforms - democratic processes of decision-making, a more active role in the Church for laymen and women; a more positive note in preaching, less preoccupation with the current trends in sexual and bioethical culture, less attachment to the old forms of the Church presence in politics and public life.

They speak of reforms and point to what they call a crisis of leadership and accuse Popes Montini, Luciani, Wojtyla and Ratzinger of scarce fidelity to the innovative spirit of Vatican II.

Those who sustain this thesis argue that in 1967-68, after the first round of Conciliar reforms, fear of internal divisions prevailed among the Catholic hierarchy in the Vatican, which led, they claimed, to a halt in the Church's aggiornamento (keeping abreast with The world).

Instead, they claim, the most active components of the Catholic community were de-motivated, leading the Church to a progressive distancing from the vital world of man today.

Pope Benedict XVI however maintains that the crisis is far more profound, and that any changes in organization and preaching would not remedy anything unless there is a widespread renewal of the faith.

He spoke of this in the strongest terms when he addressed the Roman Curia last December 27. a Curia already all fevered up because of internal issues which would come to light a few weeks later by so many leaks of confidential documents. [Here, Accattoli falls into the usual unwarranted generalizing mode of MSM. What 'internal issues' were heating up the Curia in December 2011 that have not been present for decades, only taking different specificities with time, and therefore still assumed, probably quite unfairly, to be present today and tomorrow? And what earth-shaking disclosures have the few miserable leaked documents really brought to light? What catastrophes have they caused? More about this below, because it is a major element of the irrational and mindless Pavlov's-dog reflexes that have been the universal media response to these literally piddling leaks.]

Speaking of Europe, the Pope on that occasion asked his co-workers to observe "how the median age of persons who go to Church regularly is getting more and more old and that their number is diminishing continually, in keeping with the stagnation in vocations to the priesthood, and with how skepticism and disbelief are growing;".

His diagnosis was more severe than the denunciation: "The core of the Church's crisis in Europe is the crisis of faith. If we do not find a response ourselves, if the faith does not recover its vitality, to become a profound conviction and a true force resulting from the encounter with Jesus Christ, all other reforms will be ineffective".

Regarding the speed at which the Christians of Europe are aging, the Pope cited the 'joyous passion for the faith' which had comforted him greatly when he was in Africa last November, and before that, when he was in Madrid for World Youth Day: "Among them (young people and Africans), one could not perceive any sign of the fatigue of faith which has become widespread among us, none of that tedium of being Christian which has always been perceptible among us:.

'The tedium of being Christian': words to memorize. In the encyclical Spe salvi (2007), Benedict XVI, citing a 'prophecy' by Kant, asked whether Europeans still consider Christianity 'worthy of love'.

Tedium and disaffection: these are the two salient points in the theologian Pope's reflection on the de-Crhistianization of Europe. Few, I think, can have a more acute sense than he does of the crisis of faith.

Thus, this is the Benedettian concept: a reform of the Church through a recovery of faith. A recovery to be realized "through an encounter with Christ" - in prayer, penitence, conversion.

That is why he decreed a Year of Faith which begins in October on the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965).

Also in October, a Synodal Assembly on the New Evangelization - that is, on the need to re-evangelize the European nations which had been among the first to be Christianized.

The German Pope's confidence in the "new way of being Christian' shown by young people and African Catholics is singular. He knows that the continent which has the largest number of churchgoing Catholics today is Africa, and he knows the projections by scholars that in 20-25 years, the number of African Catholics will surpass those of Europe.

He also knows that even today, the greatest number of 'active' Christians in the world are no longer those who belong to the historic churches (Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican or Reformation Protestant) but to the pentecostal churches, or free churches, or non-denominational Christian churches .

His 'impolitic' reaction to the crisis leads him to look at enthusiastic, vital and charismatic forms of living the faith, such as that of young people and Africans.

It is a surprising development in a man who is so rational. But that which is surprising deserves to be understood.



Some reflections on mindless
media hype of Vatileaks, etc

The cacophonous chorus in the media - and therefore in public opinion - of Chicken-Little sky-is-falling reactions to Vatileaks is truly appalling because it seems so mindless. And because everyone is indulging in it, including names like Luigi Accattoli and Andrea Tornielli.

Haven't the Vaticanistas themselves all these past few decades accustomed the public to think of the Vatican as a perennially simmering devil's brew of career rivalries, petty intrigues and other unspecified irregularities and unspeakable acts, leaving the public to imagine the worst they can?

Surely, what the public has been imagining all these years about 'resident wickedness in the Vatican' is far more lurid and catastrophic than what these pathetic documents have revealed.

C'mon! Over-priced contracts, absurdly petty backbiting and backstabbing, as Mons. Vigano claims (even as he practices it himself); a loony anonymous memorandum whose principal purpose seems to be to trigger an open and unseemly premature war for the papal succession; and an exchange of documents expressing reasonable reservations about some provisions of anti-money-laundering regulations? That's what all this 'scandal' has amounted to so far.

The entire community of Dan Brown clones churning out their potboilers about unimaginable depths of Satanic evil in the Vatican must be splitting their sides laughing at the puniness of these allegations - which all of MSM as well as the Catholic media are blowing way beyond proportion! And let no one sanctimoniously claim 'it's the principle of the thing', not the actual magnitude (or lack thereof) of the alleged offenses/crimes/sins.

NO! Perspective matters too. Proportion matters. There is no Banco Ambrosiano scandal here that cost the Vatican $250 million to reinmburse bank clients who lost their funds in the bank collapse. No one has hanged himself from London's Blackfriars Bridge or in a jail cell over anything in Vatileaks. No Swiss Guard love triangle homicide-suicide. No innocent teenager abducted by the Mafia or Eastern European spy services to leverage the release of a would-be assassin.

The only assassinations committed so far have been character assassinations, and surely that exquisite black art was not invented in the Ratzinger Pontificate! Far worse slanders than those in Vatileaks were universally perpetrated against the person of the Holy Father himself in that hateful and hate-filled spring of 2010.

So please, can everyone - Vaticanistas first of all -just sit back and consider rationally how much ado about nothing this tragicomedy of errors constitutes? If the 'scandalized' media were really scandalized,
- They ought to have exposed and named the officials who awarded the overpriced contracts at the Governatorate, so they can be properly investigated and disciplined.
- They should have insisted that Vigano reveal exactly what corruption took place, since he threw the word around but did not substantiate it - did anyone get kickbacks or otherwise profit materially from all the cronyism, and who were they?
-- They could have done investigative work on the RAI executive whom Vigano names as a scurrilous and disreputable lay henchman, in effect, of Cardinal Bertone.
- They should have checked out Vigano's claims that Mons. Paolo Nicolini falsified invoices and had cash shortfalls when he worked at the Lateran University.
- They should have asked for the formal report of the internal Vatican inquiry that did investigate Vigano's accusations and concluded they were unfounded. (It wouldn't have hurt the 'accused' since their names and alleged offenses were already disclosed by Vigano, and the findings exonerating them or failing to establish their culpability would have been good for them.)

They did none of that. If such allegations by an inside source had been made about Italian government officials, verification checks would have been carried out promptly and energetically by the media. But because the accusations involve Vatican officials, everyone in media is willing to just accept Vigano's accusations as fact, and take his letters as sufficient evidence for his allegations.

What's the worse that has happened to anyone here? A man who desperately wanted to become a cardinal more than anything else will probably never get to be one. Cardinal Bertone may find it even more difficult to get his act together and clean house in the Secretariat of State.

Oh, but think of the damage to the image of the Church, you might say! Get real! They'll pile up on her, anyway, with or without Vatileaks. The entire catalog of evil, human and subhuman, is already imputed to her. MSM would have easily found some other pretext to start a next round in their determined campaign to sink the Barque of Peter and topple the Rock.

And the Church is not going to lose more 'faithless' because of this - they already dropped out long ago. They have to be re-evangelized in any case, or given up as good riddance.

So, enough already with the pretend hand-wringing and faux outrage over 'the revelations of Vatileaks'. There is still no there there, and no one in MSM can get out of the herd mentality enough to say so. Or prove with facts that there is something here other than the customary dose, no more, no less, of human fallibility and sinfulness that afflicts all of us.



Forgive the seeming self-indulgence in re-posting those early reflections on Vatileaks, because nothing has changed. No one has added an iota of fact to prove or disprove Vigano's accusations, and no one has even bothered to check out any of it. And yet, all the write-ups about the B16 Pontificate inevitably describe it as 'plagued by sex abuse and corruption in the Vatican'. Completely ignoring that 1) Joseph Ratzinger denounced the filth of priestly perversion ahead of anyone else in the Church and proceeded to do concrete work to combat it, and 2) that no one has come up with any concrete example of the corruption they denounce so sanctimoniously.

Almost everyone in the media, even some of those most 'friendly' to Benedict XVI and who ought to know better, have been trafficking in outright lies or broad misleading generalities when writing or speaking about him. It's not going to get better now that he is no longer Pope, and I feel dutybound to register my reasonable protests whenever I come across such untruths, at the risk of being repetitively tedious.

[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 02/03/2013 18:21]

Thanks to Beatrice who has shared this letter sent to her by one of the followers of her website (which has a wealth of material from French sources, which I will tap as soon and as often as I can) of... This reflection by a priest says a lot of what we may have wanted to say ourselves....

This is simply 'au revoir'
Translated from

March 2, 2013

---

He left as he wanted to, in simplicity and in beauty, having decided, after long reflection, a long interior meditation ['after having repeatedly examined my conscience before God, coram Deo'] of which he has deemed us worthy to confide. He had chosen to respond to the will of God as it was revealed to his conscience.

How beautiful it was, the light of a peaceful Roman spring day, as if suspended between heaven and earth, as a pure white helicopter flew over the roofs of the Eternal City. How breathtakingly splendid were the gilded domes of the Roman churches, of the hilltowns called the 'castelli romani', and Lake Albano in its frame of greenery.

How beautiful it was, the goodwill of Romans watching from their roofs or windows, the joy of the parish priest of Castel Gandolfo welcoming a familiar 'parishioner', the faces of numerous religious in tears, images of the Church's universality. The wide-eyed little girl in her father's arms unsure if she should laugh or cry.

Even the amplitude of the material means placed at the disposition of an old man heading to retirement, the ballet of the troops, of vehicles and TV crews, was itself a homage from the world to the ministry of Peter.

There was more than just the emotion we heard from the TV commentators who themselves were seeking to understand what was happening.

A departure which reflected the retiring Pontiff in every way. Familial and intimate, recollected and spiritual.

Some world leaders leave in shame, amid general indifference, or in the violence of hatred that had accumulated against them. He left in God's time. In peace and serenity.

Perhaps we will see him again. Perhaps one day, we shall pass near him, in the Vatican Gardens, knowing he is there - praying, working, dedicating his remaining strength to the service of Christ and his Church.

His silence will comfort us. He will continue to be a living predication and an appeal for us to always turn with confidence to Christ.

Au revoir, most holy Father, and good night...

Abbé Hervé BENOÎT
Catholic Priest

---

Fr. Lombardi offers a more abstract look at Benedict XVI's departure from public life..

A hopeful farewell

March 2, 2013

The final days of the pontificate of Benedict XVI will certainly remain ingrained in the memory of innumerable people and will mark an important stage, new and unprecedented, in the history of a pilgrim Church.

For many it was almost a discovery of the Pope’s humanity and spirituality; for others, a confirmation of his humility, along with his deep life in faith.

If Pope Wojtyla had given, with admirable courage before the eyes of the world, his courageous witness of faith in the suffering of sickness, Pope Ratzinger, without lesser courage, gave us the witness of acceptance before God of the limits of old age and of the discernment on the exercise of responsibility that God had entrusted to him.

Both taught us, not only with their Magisterium, but also and perhaps even more effectively with their lives, what it means to seek and to find everyday the will of God for us and for our service, even in the most crucial situations of human existence.

As Benedict XVI told us effectively himself, the resignation of a Pope is not in any way abandonment, neither of the mission received or much less of the faithful. It is the continuation of entrusting to God his Church, in the secure hope that he continues to guide it.

With humility and serenity, Benedict XVI says he “tried to do” everything possible to serve the good of the Church, a Church that is not his, but God’s, and which, by the continued working of the Spirit, “lives, grows and awakens souls”.

In this sense, the legacy of Pope Benedict is today an invitation to all to prayer and responsibility. First, naturally, for the cardinals to whom falls the task of the election of a successor, but also and no less for the entire Church, who needs to accompany in prayer the discernment of the electors and the new Pope in the task of effectively proclaiming the Gospel “for the good of the Church and of humanity” and to guide the community to an always greater faithfulness to the same Gospel of Christ.

Because no Pope can do this alone. We will do it therefore also with him, and the Pope Emeritus will continue to accompany us, “working” for this – these were his final words spoken publicly –“with his heart, with his love, with his prayer, with his reflection”.

Thank you, Pope Benedict.


Benedict XVI has shown the world by an example that, for those who have no blinders, is dazzling in its luminosity, a simple obvious fact of human existence that is often ignored: No one is indispensable. No human being.

The Italian saying so often cited these days - 'Morto un Papa, se ne fa un'altro'(If a Pope dies, another becomes Pope) is true for any position however exalted. Earthly existence means that humans come and go. Men die or leave office, but life goes on in the world, in society, and living people take their place.

Everyone must come to terms with human mortality and the inexorable stages of life that come with it. Benedict XVI has had the wisdom and the humility to accept that, and to courage to say, "No, I will not inflict my own afflictions and limitations on the Church, because she deserves someone to lead her who is in the fullness of his powers. I have done my part, and beyond this, I can no longer effectively continue the Petrine ministry".

He did this with great certainty and total confidence, because, as he often says, the Church is God's not ours, and he will take care it does not sink, despite all the evil elements caught up in its net along with the truly good and saintly.

St. Ambrose said, 'Ibi Petrus, ibi Ecclesia' - where Peter is, there the Church is - but if Peter is afflicted and ineffective in any way, then so is the Church afflicted and ineffective.

As someone who loves Benedict XVI and has followed him as closely as I could these past eight years, I did not want to publicly acknowledge my deep concerns about his well-being and the rapid signs of aging which seemed to have overtaken him in the past year and a half, at least. I refused to believe that the 'eternally youthful' Joseph Ratzinger was now succumbing to the ravages of age - though we have the example of his brother as a reminder.

It was not so much any impaired ability to move that first caught my attention but his manner of speaking. Times when he seemed to hurry through reading a message or a homily, without his usual enunciation of meaning by careful phrasing and pacing of the text, and with a voice that was distinctly flat as with exhaustion. The occasional bouts of coughing that he had, which made me wonder if he had any throat condition at all that should worry us. The contrast was obvious because much of the time, he spoke in fine form.

My first thought was that if he lost the faculty of speech or his speech became impaired in any way, then it would be a serious setback for him, not just as a person who all his life was called Goldmund (Chrysostomos) but as the universal Pastor whose Magisterium must be authoritative not just in content but in delivery.

And then, his eyesight. His older brother has been virtually blind for five years now. What if the same gene worked in him! Sure, he would be able to say the prayers by memory, but how would a blind Pope say Mass on Mondovision and fumble around - because he can be helped to move around the altar, but celebrating the Mass involves gestures done by the celebrant alone that cannot be done for him.

Because of impaired speech and impaired mobility, John Paul II delegated papal Masses to his cardinals in the final months of his life, and even had his homilies and speeches read by someone else.

Joseph Ratzinger had time enough during the final years of John Paul II's increasing physical disability to think about the implications of physical affliction on a Pope in this very public age and its inhuman demands on the time and resources of a Pope.

John Paul II was exceptional in that he chose to live his private suffering in public. And his public Calvary was accepted by all in the spirit that he offered it. But as an ordinary human being, I believe very deeply that suffering must be done in private, not made into a public spectacle (which it became, inevitably, with someone as prominent on the world stage as John Paul II was).

I would have preferred to be spared John Paul II's public agony - I did not need to see it to be convinced he was a holy man, or to appreciate that suffering is part of existence which we must live with Christian fortitude. Christ set the example on the Cross. One cannot possibly forget that!

A Pope cannot delegate his powers and authority - that is why there is no deputy Pope or anything equivalent. But he can renounce those powers and authority completely if he is no longer able to carry them out as they should be carried out. (Even at the Conclave that elected him, Benedict XVI said he had urged his supporters, "Choose someone younger and more able", to no avail.)

Complete renunciation of the Papacy is the simple and humble choice Benedict XVI made. In the full knowledge that he would be faulted yet again, as he has been so clamorously, for failing to 'follow the example of his predecessor'.

To the very end of his public life - and perhaps for some time to come in the transient chronicles of our time - he continues to be compared unfavorably to John Paul II. Who would never have been so uncharitable to Joseph Ratzinger as many Catholics are proving to be.

May God continue to clothe his faithful servant Joseph Ratzinger in his protection and grace, even now that he is no longer formally his Vicar on earth. But he will be in persona Christi for as long as he lives. (And a piano=playing one at that!)

What has most motivated me to set down my thoughts about this 'gran rifiuto' by our beloved Benedict was Cardinal George Pell's recent strong words clearly and deliberately made to Australian TV, openly criticizing Benedict XVI's decision as "wrong and destabilizing for the Church".

My first reaction was shock that he chose to say these things so openly at this time when it can serve no positive purpose at all but can only be counter-productive, especially since he was always considered one of Benedict XVI's staunchest allies. Absolutely nothing and no one is served by the statements he made.

And the second was how can it be destabilizing to the Church when the purpose is precisely to place her on more secure footing under new leadership, with someone in the fullness of his powers who can meet the harrowing demands on a Pope in our time... I cannot even try to rationalize Cardinal Pell's appalling judgment lapse, let alone forgive him his disloyalty to Benedict XVI. He has every right to think what he does, but what was the urgency of saying it now?

Saturday, March 2, Second Week of Lent

Extreme right: Agnes on the 50-crown Czech banknote; her father King Ottokar was on the demonetized 20-crown bill.
ST. AGNES (ANEZKA) OF BOHEMIA (1205-1282), Poor Clare nun
She was the daughter of the King of Bohemia and was betrothed at age 3 to a duke who died three years later. Growing up,
she felt a strong religious calling. After declining offers of marriage from King Henry VII of Germany and Henry III of England,
she had to appeal to Pope Gregory IX to refuse the proposal of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, who replied that he would
not be offended to be turned down for 'the King of heaven'. Agnes built a hospital for the poor and a convent for the new
Franciscan order in Prague. Then in 1236, she and seven other noblewomen set up the first Poor Clares community in Bohemia.
St. Clare herself sent five sisters from San Damiano to help them set up, and wrote at least four letters to Agnes counseling
her on being an abbess. Agnes preferred to call herself 'senior sister'. Besides her untiring work for the poor, she became
known for her strict rule of poverty, obedience and mortification. She led her community for 46 years until she died, inspiring
great devotion among her people. She was canonized by John Paul II in 1989, and Benedict XVI remembered her during his
visit to the Czech Republic on the 20th anniversary of her canonization in 2009.
Readings for today's Mass:
www.usccb.org/bible/readings/030213.cfm


No announcements from the Vatican today.
At his Saturday briefing, Fr. Lombardi merely announced that the Sistine Chapel remains open to visitors
until a date for the Conclave is set and preparations are begun for it.

The headline of this CNA/EWTN story is one reason why I tear my hair out at the mindlessness of some editors. Bad enough they are encumbered by all their baggage of prejudices about the Church (with a ballast of much ignorance about the essentials of the faith, its basic practices and the rudiments of Church history)... I was not intending to run any speculative stories about papabile, etc. because I have no particular dog in the show (except that I pray the Lord with everything I am capable of that Schoenborn will not be a serious candidate in any way!), though this is not that kind of story at all.

One would think from the headline that the three US cardinals who gave the news conference did not think previous Popes were men of 'deep faith' at all! This 'requirement' need not even be articulated, because of course, a Pope has to be a man of deep faith - it is his duty to 'confirm his brothers in the faith', meaning in the 'deposit of faith' that the Church has accrued and treasured through the centuries.

For CNA's headline writer, the real headline for the story is right there in the first few paragraphs - that the next Pope ought not to be chosen according to geographic concerns....

US cardinals say next Pope
must be 'man of deep faith'



From left, Cardinals Sean O'Malley of Boston, Daniel DiNardo of Houston, and Francis George of Chicago.

Rome, Italy, Mar 1, 2013 (CNA/EWTN News).- Countering much speculation that the next Pope will be chosen based on geographic concerns, three American cardinals say the best candidate to succeed Benedict XVI is a man of holiness who can communicate the Gospel.

[So why did not any of the three say 'someone like Benedict himself', because not to say that would seem to imply that the emeritus Pope was not a man of holiness and could not communicate the Gospel, when these are precisely his two greatest strengths. He is what he preaches! It seems all three have succunbed to the lay tendency, especially the MSM, to 'discard the old Pope' like an unwanted pair of shoes = literally, 'into the dustbin of history' - because now 'our main concern is to find a new Pope'.]

“Our people back home and throughout the world are all praying for this event, that we will be guided to be able to choose the very best person to lead the Church,” Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston said.

Cardinal Francis George of Chicago has said that he and his fellow cardinals aim to choose the man who is “best suited” for the papacy and not base their decision on a candidate’s age or national origin.

He said the cardinals’ first concern is “that the faith be strengthened and passed on” and that Catholics “be cared for” no matter where they are in the world.

Cardinal O’Malley, Cardinal George and Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston spoke about the upcoming conclave at a Feb. 28 press conference at the Pontifical North American College in Rome. The press conference came after Pope Benedict’s departure from the Vatican for Castel Gandolfo, but before his resignation took effect at 8 p.m. Rome time.

Cardinal George was in the 2005 conclave that elected Pope Benedict XVI, but the other two cardinals have never been in a papal conclave. Only 117 cardinals are eligible to vote in the 2013 conclave, and two have said they will miss the conclave due to health reasons.

[If it is perfectly acceptable for a cardinal to miss a conclave - his main duty as cardinal - due to physical inability, why is it any less acceptable for a Pope to withdraw altogether when he is no longer fully capable of discharging his office?

Everyone has made 'the Roman Curia' the whipping boy for any and all ills afflicting the Church [as if bishops did not have full autonomous aithority in their respective dioceses - and don't they bear any responsibility at all?]. And yet in all the criticisms of Benedict XVI for the perceived sins of his Curia, even the media ignore that John Paul II governed through a Curia that he left to their own devices and that of his trusted aides in his Polish inner circle. Was that a better example of papal governance? His personal holiness does not excuse his administrative shortcomings (just as the latter have nothing to do at all with why he is being considered for sainthood) . Benedict XVI, by all accounts, is no less holy as a person, and yet no one gives him the 'modicum of sympathy' that he deserves, much less credit for his personal holiness!]

Cardinal O’Malley was not sure he could identify a single “top priority” for selecting the next Pontiff.

“Certainly there are some wonderful candidates there, and we all recognize their talent and their goodness and their competence,” he said.

“Certainly our people want a holy man to be the Pope. We’ve been very blessed in the last century to have extraordinarily learned and holy men as Pope. Many have been beatified or canonized.”

He said the next Pope must be “a man of deep faith” with an ability to communicate that faith.

[So the right hand taketh away what the left hand giveth. Cardinal O'Malley acknowledges the general excellence of Popes in the last century, but still makes the generic statement that the CNA editor used for his headline!... I am sure none of the cardinals meant any malice towards Benedict XVI - they simply appear to have stopped thinking about him at all. They cou]d not even wait until he was no longer Pope to call the news confcrence.

The Boston cardinal said Catholics are “anxious to have someone who can touch the hearts, particularly of our young people.” [Once again, the statement would imply that Benedict XVI was unable to touch hearts 'especially of young people'. Sometimes, you'd think these Eminences do not listen to what they are saying at all, or they would be more careful and less generic.]

The next Pope must carry on the “new evangelization” and inspire those who have left Catholic practice to return to their faith.

Cardinal DiNardo said Catholics want someone who can fill the role of the Apostle Peter and fulfill Jesus’s command “feed my sheep.”

A shepherd of the Church must give “good teaching” and “encouragement” while serving as “a principle of unity,” he said.

[And they did not get any of that with Benedict XVI???? It all sounds so unreal, and yet I caught much of it through the excerpts replayed by EWTN this morning. No one spoke Benedict XVI's name until they were asked what they thought the effects might be of the emeritus Pope's renunciation on the Conclave.]

Cardinal George said he imagines each cardinal has a mental list of primary candidates and secondary candidates that shapes their “more intimate” conversations with each other.

He said their questions for each other might include what kind of person a candidate is and how he would react to a certain situation.

He said the Gospel is from God and so there will “always be those areas in which society and the Church don’t meet.”

“A good pastor will mediate those (differences) as best he can without betraying the faith or his people, in such a way that the Church remains an active agent for transformation of the world.”

Cardinal George said the cardinal electors have to be “well informed.” He is reading short clips on possible candidates and their descriptions in the Pontifical Yearbook. He is also searching out the opinions of those who know them.

Cardinal O’Malley said he is using the internet “a lot.”

Cardinal DiNardo too will be reading about the possible papal candidates and talking with other cardinals. He said he will also reflect on the nature of the See of Peter and its place in the life of the Church.

“This is my first conclave, so I also have to admit I’m going to learn what exactly is it we have to do,” he said. “There are all kinds of formalities. Some of those you have to study and learn about, some you find out about from some of the other cardinals.”

All three stressed the importance of prayer in their decision.

Cardinal DiNardo said he intends to “intensify” his prayers about the papal election.

“That became very obvious to me this morning when the Holy Father said he promised his obedience to whoever the successor of Peter is,” he said. “That requires a great deal of prayer and help from the Holy Spirit in my mind.”

He reported that Catholics at recent confirmation Masses at parishes in Texas kept telling him they are praying for him and for the Holy Father.

Cardinal O’Malley said he considers his conclave vote “one of the most important activities I will be engaged in, as a priest and a cardinal.”

“As soon as the Holy Father made the announcement, I’ve been bringing this to prayer, asking the Holy Spirit’s help to be able to discern what is God’s will.”

The 2013 conclave will be the first in modern times to take place after a papal resignation.

Cardinal O’Malley said it is “very difficult” to predict the long-term effects of Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation. {They did get around to talking about Benedict XVI but only in terms of the effects of his resignation!]

He said it could affect the conclave’s decision to elect an older man, knowing that he would not have to continue as Pope into his 90s.

The outgoing Pope Benedict XVI met with 144 cardinals on the morning of his resignation. He spoke with each one individually.

“He addressed the cardinals this morning with a lot of affection,” said Cardinal O’Malley. “He will never be forgotten and he will always be in our hearts.”

All this talk about how the precedent set by Benedict XVI would mean that future Popes will be subject to external and internal pressures to resign for some reason or other is based on the usual secular premise that a Pope is like a political leader who necessarily responds to 'pressures' and who has no higher considerations at all. One would like to think that a Pope ought to be strong enough to make his decisions not on the basis of what other human beings and their interests tell him to do, but as Benedict XVI did - coram Deo, facing God alone - and for the genuine good of the Church.

To seriously question the rightness of Benedict XVI's decision is to think that he made the decision lightly and to ignore everything that is known about the man and his concept of duty to the Church. Though he was never a robust man, he took on the Papacy he accepted in the Sistine Chapel that April afternoon in 2005 and stayed with it as long as he was physically able.

Anyone who watched him walk Thursday afternoon in the short corridor leading to the San Damaso door of the Apostolic Palace, or the much longer corridor leading to the outer balcony in Castel Gandolfo, would have realized from the visible effort he made how much will it has taken for him to appear as normal as possible when in public view - to have managed to stand erect and waving all those minutes in the Popemobile before the last GA, to stand for almost an hour greeting each of the cardinals and Curial prelates who came to bid him goodbye on Thursday morning - favoring us all the while with his 'eternally boyish' smiling profile, a radiant cameo that none of those who filed past came close to matching in terms of objective good looks alone, much less of spiritual beauty. He could have sat down doing this, and not one of his guests would have faulted him, but he chose to stand.

Does anyone really think he wanted to be wheeled in and out of St. Peter's Basilica unless it was absolutely beyond his strength to do that and preside properly at a two-hour Mass as well? Why, for heaven's sake, was almost everyone expecting the fourth oldest serving Pope in history to be impervious to age, to expect him to continue doing a multitude of functions no one would even conceive for one's own parent or grandparent in their old age? God gave Joseph Ratzinger numerous blessings but not immunity from the laws of physiology and nature.

I admit I cannot stand reading the slightest reproach for his historic decision (let alone 'traditional' theologians who call it 'theologically and metaphysically unacceptable'! Yeah, right! The Aquinas of our time never thought of that, did he?) A man like him who was used to giving only the most excellent service all his life could not possibly think that his increasing disabilities would constitute other than a grave disssrvice to the Church. (An Italian commentator pointed out today how important it was that Benedict XVI made the decision at a time when no one could doubt his mental faculties, to underscore that he came to his decision rationally and of his own free will, as the Code of Canon Law requires.)

Here are the articles which concern Cardinal Pell of Australia that I referred to earlier...

Australian cardinal criticises
Benedict XVI on his last day as Pope

February 28, 2013

Cardinal Pell, Australia's representative at next month's secret conclave to elect a successor, said Benedict XVI was a "brilliant teacher" but "government wasn't his strong point" in a candid interview on the eve of the Pope's departure.

"I think I prefer somebody who can lead the Church and pull it together a bit," Cardinal Pell said. [Meaning Benedict could not lead the Church and pull it together!]

He pointed to the so-called "Vatileaks" scandal, in which Benedict's butler leaked secret papal memos revealing intrigues between rival groups of cardinals, though he said it was "very easy to be wise after the event".

"I think the governance is done by most of the people around the Pope [Well, what a brilliant conclusion! What, the Vicar of Christ should have been doing what his Secretary of state ought to be doing, which is to administer the Vatican's bureaucracy? Even Jesus assigned Judas Iscariot to take care of the Twelve's administration and finances!] and that wasn't always done brilliantly. And I'm not breaking any ground there – this is said very commonly," Cardinal Pell added in a later radio interview from the Vatican.

[One must remark the faux-naivete of the cardinal who appears to buy everything vile said about Benedict's Curia and would seem to imply that the bureaucratic snafu, whatever there is, is specific to this Curia alone, that it was previously unheard of at the Vatican. Before the last Conclave, did he say the same thing about the Curia under the previous Pontificate, which by all accounts, was in even worse shape because it really had been left to its own devices under the last Pope? Did Pell not, therefore, vote for Joseph Ratzinger in that Conclave if he was so concerned with bureaucratic perfection as the primary requisite for a Pope?

In this day and age with a Church that has a membership of 1.2 billion, isn't that what a Secretary of State is for? To run the government of the Church, while the Pope occupies himself with the spiritual and pastoral needs of the flock? Too bad Benedict entrusted the job to someone who, from all appearances, was more intent on building his own power base at the Vatican, further antagonizing the entrenched elements who were already hostile to him for being an outsider in an old boys' club. What Cardinal Bertone did not reckon with was that Benedict did not have the luxury of longevity to begin with, much less that he would curtail the natural lifetime allotted to him by voluntarily leaving office. Meanwhile. he all but squandered seven years in maladministration.]

Australia's most senior Catholic cleric also said the 85-year-old Pontiff's decision to resign – the first Pope to do so since the Middle Ages – set a worrying precedent for the Church.

"People who, for example, might disagree with a future Pope, will mount a campaign to get him to resign," he suggested. [And didn't the most powerful media interests and most liberal Catholics try that against Benedict XVI in 2009-2010 with all the character assassination they attempted and the investigations they bankrolled to find anything they could besmirch Benedict with? He didn't resign then, did he? Why presume that future Popes will be less steadfast?]

He said the German Pontiff, formerly Joseph Ratzinger, had been "well aware that this was a break with tradition, slightly destabilising." [What's destabilizing? I find the headlines ludicrous lamenting the 'leaderless' state of the Catholic Church for the next 2-3 weeks as if it were a major tragedy. All local churches are self-administered and pretty much autonomous, except in matters of doctrine. And many of them don't pay much attention to what the Pope says normally throughout the year anyway, so why should 2-3 weeks make a difference? Ditto for individual Catholics who lament almost ludicrously, "He's left me confused" or "He's abandoned us" or "What will happen to us now?" Did they care about anything he said at all before he announced he was resigning?]

Asked what he would be seeking in the next Pope, Cardinal Pell said "he wanted somebody "who'll maintain the tradition, both in faith and especially in morals, where it's under attack...I want somebody who is able to speak to the world". [Meaning he thinks Benedict XVI was deficient or unsatisfactory on both counts???]

And also I would like somebody with strong pastoral experience in a diocese who is able to lift the morale of the Roman Curia, and perhaps provide a bit more discipline." i.e., Cardinal Ratzinger did not have strong pastoral experience, demoralized his Curia and provided not much discipline at all.]

[I have always wondered whether the heads of the Roman Curia are so spineless or unimaginative as not to have taken the simple initiative of writing an annual open letter telling the public in simple terms what it is they do exactly, how many people they have working for them, challenging the media to come up with any specific wrongdoing that can be attributed to their particular office, and ending with pledging their loyalty to the Pope and to the Church. There are 22 such organisms at the Vatican, and if even just 18 of them could write such a letter, how different the perception might be!

I say this because other than the perceived problems at IOR (reporting of which ignores the scrutiny that IOR has undergone under the eyes of Moneyval, with mostly passing marks), the Governatorate (which Vigano claims he cleaned up, anyway), and SecState which has really been the presumptive main culprit and center of factional rivalries and power plays (it's the only one of the Vatican offices large enough to harbor such shenanigans), has anyone read of any complaint or scandal attributed to any of the other Curial offices:

CDF, Saints, Worship, Bishops, Clergy, Family, Christian Unity, Inter-Religious Dialog, New Evangelization, Culture, Propaganda Fide (there was an investigation into questionable business deals undertaken by the Curial officials in the previous Pontificate), Christian Unity, Justice and Peace (there was that flap about Cardinal Turkson's position paper on a world economic authority, but that was a tempest in a teapot that mostly embarrassed Turkson himself - who is now a papabile), Ministry to Healthcare Workers, Migrants and Refugees (they had a former president, holdout from the Wojtyla years, who issued 'ten commandments for drivers' or something equally silly), and so on, down the line.

Has anyone read or heard stories in the past eight years that cited any one particular Curial office and named names in any of these offices for improper conduct, much less nefarious or criminal? NOPE, ZIP, ZILCH, ZERO! But maybe Cardinal Pell read something in Australia that has been kept secret from even the Italian media! Even the infamous Panorama expose claiming to document the activities of three homosexual priests who claimed to work in the Curia never identified which office(s) exactly they worked for. If the writer had truly been serious, he ought to have telephoned their office head(s) and challenged them with his expose.]

Benedict bid an emotional farewell on Wednesday to some 150,000 pilgrims in St Peter's Square, speaking of the "stormy waters" of multiple scandals and Vatican infighting that have plagued his tenure.

The scourge of paedophile priests and cover-ups by their superiors cast a dark shadow over Benedict's papacy, combined with a long-standing money-laundering scandal at the Vatican bank and the Vatileaks controversy. without mentioning that neither problem originated in his Pontificate, nor that he has taken historic steps to redress aspects of an inner Church culture that had gone seriously wrong but which simply festered and ulcerated in the years before he became Pope. The media remember only the bad things, and choose to ignore anything good that may have been done by the Church and in the Church.]

Now, consider this interview given by Cardinal Pell the following day - when it seems like his Mr Hyde personality speaking, completely different from the Dr. Jekyll in the previous interview. I had to rub my eyes more than once to make sure I was reading about the same Cardinal Pell! How can he pull off such a two-faced act? What a blessing in disguise, it turns out, that he was taken out of the running for the job Cardinal Ouellet now holds at Bishops, because he has been unable to satisfactorily answer persistent charges made against him in connection with sexual abuses (not that he committed them but he may have mishandled dealing with priest-culprits).

Future Popes will mirror
Benedict XVI, says cardinal
By Estefania Aguirre


Vatican City, Mar 2, 2013 (CNA/EWTN News) - An Australian cardinal said that future popes are likely to follow in the footsteps of Benedict XVI.

“I think his pontificate will be typical of pontificates of the future,” said Cardinal George Pell of Sydney, Australia.

“I admire him for the decision that he took, but it does change the situation a little bit,” said Cardinal Pell in an EWTN interview in Rome on Feb. 28.

Benedict XVI resigned as Pope that morning. The cardinals of the Catholic Church have been flocking to Rome to meet next week in preparation for the conclave.

Cardinal Pell reflected on the last Pope’s pontificate and the challenges facing the Church.

“The world of the press is very powerful, coming often with quite a different and hostile agenda, but I think the Holy Father answered that challenge and I think he answered it well,” he said.

The cardinal, who travels to Rome frequently, said he knows “just how important it is for us to discern what the Spirit wants us to do and to get it right.”

“When I go into the conclave I’ll be thanking God that I’m not alone in making this decision,” he said. “I will be with 114 of us, all wise cardinals, with an enormous range of experience.”

“Many of them would have been through much tougher times than I ever have,” Cardinal Pell added.

This will be the second conclave for the Australian, whom Pope John Paul II made a cardinal in 2003. He recalled his memories of the 2005 conclave, which elected Benedict XVI to the papacy.

“It’s a very edifying time in the Sistine Chapel and what struck me forcibly was the manifest faith and devotion of the other cardinals,” said the cardinal. “I found that fortifying and consoling and I’m sure it will be the same this time.”

Benedict XVI met with the cardinals, including Cardinal Pell, before stepping down

Cardinal Pell described Benedict XVI as “very much the German gentleman,” “a gentle, faithful and prayerful priest,” and “a very kind and wonderful man.”

The cardinal, who worked closely with Pope Benedict, said the resigned pontiff had displayed “brilliant” teaching and had worked hard during these last eight years.

“I remember him very fondly and with gratitude and I felt a real moment of sadness this morning,” said Cardinal Pell.

“I felt for him, as he had to decide whether it was time to go, whether it was beyond him,” he added.

The cardinal believes liturgical reform is one of the most important contributions of Benedict XVI.

Two of his most beautiful memories of Benedict were at the vigil in Sydney at the World Youth Day.

“It was just so silent and there were 400,000 youth up on Sunday morning for Mass,” said Cardinal Pell.

“After communion, there was perfect silence and I could hear the birds singing,” he said.

“They were beautiful moments and I hope we don’t lose the momentum that we’ve gained towards the restoration of a proper sense of worship in the liturgy.”

About two years ago, Italian journalist Bruno Mastroianni suddenly quit writing what had been an almost weekly blog entry, brief but always cogent and excellent, about the Pontificate of Benedict XVI which had a beautiful run of about two years... He has never publicly explained why he quit doing it, but he surfaces once again on the subject of Benedict XVI with this recent post on another site which he runs with his co-authors of a university study about media relations in Italy... He attributes the letter to someone who merely signed himself 'an anonymous journalist', but it could just as well be Mastroianni's device to express his own strong thoughts about how the media have treated Benedict XVI in the past eight years (and earlier)...If only the men and women of MSM at least felt such twinges of conscience...

Letter to Benedict XVI
from an anonymous journalist

At 8 p.m. of February 28, 2013, coinciding with the end of Benedict XVI's Pontificate, I received this anonymous message simply signed "A journalist', which I am publishing herewith:

---

Dear Benedict XVI

You began your Pontificate as 'a humble worker' in the vineyard of the Lord and have ended it as 'a simple pilgrim who is starting the final stage of his pilgrimage on earth', giving us another great lesson (perhaps the last?).

We called you the German shepherd, Panzerkardinal, then the timid and isolated theologian Pope. We said "He is so unlike his predecessor" [and you meant it in the most unfavorable way possible]

We accused you of many things, commented on each decision you made as if we knew better what needed to be done. And we were mistaken many times.

Many of us may even have tried to report about you as you deserved but it was not easy in an atmosphere of (journalistic) rivalry and the common perception of a crisis in the Vatican system.

We were often arrogant, superficial, disbelieving of what we did not want to believe. We failed to fully read what you said and reported you in rash headlines. In your masterpiece catecheses, we sought out only what would 'strike' the reader's eye and call attention to the newspaper. We called you 'cold', 'weak, 'sickly'.

And how did you repay us? As a father does with his adolescent children (and this we have been, especially we newsmen) who knows how to forgive, excuse, go forward, be patient.

Now it is no longer our job to report about you. Now it is the job of History. And the light is emerging on the enormous Pope that you were. Some have started to read about you without the fog of news bias, without the pressure of having to come up with a report for the dailies. We are starting to realize that we were actually facing one of the greatest Popes in recent centuries.

And this will become public, it will disseminate, it will be unstoppable and overwhelming. It will spread across the Church, the world, all mankind. Many will rediscover the true meaning of Vatican II, love for the Catechism, faithfulness to the Gospel and to the Roman Pontiff. Rediscover friendship with Jesus, the Truth, dialog with God, devotion to Our Lady.

All the things that we had thought lost by the wayside but which are, instead, now and for always, the very life of the Church.

We will learn once more to want to go to confession. We will learn to love God and all men once more and more than ever. We will start to convert ourselves, as you have always exhorted.

And if at some point, those who claim to be experts will still say, "But Benedict XVI never succeeded to reform the Church", then they will have missed the greatest news in the history of your Pontificate. Because your reform is already underway, it has been since you became Pope - and it is just a question of knowing how to discern its fruits in the future. And for this, will we newsmen be appropriately alert?

Thank you, Benedict XVI, who are no longer with us - where you were always prey to the latest 'news' - but have now turned your attention to prayer for the good of mankind and the Church.

A Journalist

---

Castel Gandolfo the day after
by Maria Chiara Biagioni
Translated from

March 3, 2013

On the Piazza della Liberta in front of the Apostolic Palace, a few curious newsmen and some foreign visitors are still around, and TV crews who in search of news and reactions from the city folk.

These are signs that something historical had taken place in this little city perched on a hill overlooking Lake Albano. In the streets one still senses among the citizens the strong emotions felt yesterday after the doors closed behind emeritus Pope Benedict XVI who starts a life 'hidden from the world'.

"It was as if a veil of sadness had descended on the city," said don Pietro Diletti, parish priest of the church of San Tommaso da Villanova on the piazza. "As the great doors closed, we all had the sensation that a page of history had closed and turned".

With the death of a Pope, the chain that connects two stone columns marking the facade of the Apostolic Palace is usually taken down. But this time no. "It's the sign this Pontificate ended with resignation, not death", don Pietro said.

On Saturday morning, the parish priest celebrated a special Mass for Benedict XVI attended by the mayor of the city, Milvia Monachesi.

In his homily, don Pietro said, "Benedict XVI has given us an example of humility and intense relationship with God in prayer during which he made his irrevocable decision to withdraw from the Petrine ministry. A decision that is an act of love for the Church, and one that is understood as such by all of us... Benedict XVI has not fled from us, he has not abandoned the Cross. In a sense, he is more than ever present".

In the prayers for the faithful, the Massgoers prayed for "His Holiness Benedict XVI, that the Lord may protect him and give him days of serenity".

Later, don Pietro said, "We love him, he could have gone some other place, but he chose to come to Castel Gandolfo, a place he has come to love, where he feels at home".

When the Pope met with the communal council in 2011, he told them, "I enjoy it here - the mountains, the lake, the sea*, and the good people". His words are commemorated in a plaque on the front wall of the municipal building. [*The sea is the Tyrrhenian on the western coast of Italy whichcan be seen from Castel Gandolfo.]

Mayor Monachesi told us, "I left a letter for him on his desk to express closeness, gratitude and communion in prayer in behalf of the whole community. I have a dream. I know that he has said he will disappear from public life, but we would like to grant him honorary citizenship as a sign of the affectionate bond we have with Benedict XVI whom we have always felt to be one of us. He has always shown such affection for Castel Gandolfo and he did so again, honoring us with his last public remarks as Pope. This is a link that will be forever".

The director of the Pontifical Villas, Saverio Petrillo,was the one who gave the actual order to the Swiss Guards on duty Thursday evening to close the front doors of the Apostolic Palace at 8:00 p.m., when Benedict XVI formally stopped being Pope.

He said, "It was a profound experience, I was aware I was part of an exceptional event, something I had never foreseen in my long career at the Vatican."

He said that he certainly felt sadness, but not concern, "because the Holy Father has always brought comfort to everyone. He made this decision before God and to see his serenity these days is an encouragement for all of us. One thinks of the Gospel passage in which the Lord tells Peter, who did not want him to wash his feet, 'You do not understand it now. Later you will'. I find myself in the same attitude of faith. We now wish that the Holy Father can have all the time to enjoy the beauty of Creation as he said yesterday".

Within the Vatican Gardens, the Mariopoli Center has been operated by the Focolari movement, to whom the building was given by John Paul II in 1986 as training center, to which some 20,000 members come each year. it has a staff of 34 Focolarini.

On Thursday evening at the town square, there were 1,300 Focolari members in the crowd from various nations around the world who have been attending a meeting of families.

"We stayed for the closing of the doors," said Nunziatina Cilento, who heads the Center. "We felt profound emotion and great nostalgia - as if an era had closed and we must now open ourselves to what God wills. We wish to join ourselves with the Holy Father in prayer, and with the prayers of all the faithful of the world that he may have God's grace, health and serenity in his new life".

The Focolarini sent the Pope flowers and a portrait painted by Mario Franceschini. She said "we will find very occasion to send flowers to him, and we also know that he loves crostata [Italian fruit pie] so we will send that too..."

For now, she wishes him "A well deserved rest, especially after these difficult last days. A physical rest but also a spiritual one, having reposed everything to the mercy of God. And may he enjoy the serenity that comes from the Holy Spirit and brings with it so many gifts".



Now that we won't be anticipating any photos of our beloved Benedict for some indeterminate time, if at all, any and all photos from whatever time in his life are most welcome... and thanks to Aqua for passing this one on, that was in turn passed on to her by a friend:


He's not, of course, a habitual beer drinker even if he is Bavarian, but the joyous Pope emeritus will be imbibing the Holy Spirit in great big drafts as a quietly joyful contemplative and far from a morose monk....

Judging by the color of the beer, it's clearly a 'Radler'; a famous, very refreshing 50/50 mix of regular beer and white lemonade (like sprite).
I hope he get to indulge a bit, now that he doesn't have to live by a tight schedule anymore.
I miss him to death!!!!

March 3, Third Sunday of Lent

ST. KATHARINE DREXEL (USA, 1858-1955)
Missionary, Abbess, Founder of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament (for Indians and Colored Peoples)
Born to a Main Line Philadelphia family, the first 30 years of her life could have been straight out of the movie
'High Society'. But a vacation out West awakened her interest in the plight of American Indians. On a trip to Rome
in the mid-1880s, she met Pope Leo XIII, whom she asked to send missionaries to a bishop friend of hers in
Wyoming. The Pope challenged her, "Why don't you become a missionary yourself?" Back in the US, she visited
the Dakotas, met with Sioux leaders, and decided to take on the religious life. She announced on the Feast
of St. Joseph in 1889 that she intended to devote the rest of her life "to help American Indians and colored
people". The headlines screamed "Heiress gives up $7 million", her part of the family fortune which she donated
totally to her cause. With some friends she set up the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament (she would later consult
St. Frances Cabrini about the rules for the order), and eventually set up 50 mission for Indians in 16 states.
She also founded Xavier University in New Orleans, the first Catholic University for Afro-Americans. At 77,
a heart attack forced her to retire. She spent the rest of her life as an anchoress, recording her meditations
on slips of paper. She died in 1955 at age 96. She was beatified in 1988 and canonized in 2000, also named
the patron saint of racial justice and of philanthropists. She was the second American-born American woman
saint, after Elizabeth Seton.
Readings for today's Mass: www.usccb.org/bible/readings/030313.cfm


No bulletins from the Vatican today.

After leading the Sunday Angelus for 455 times wherever he has been during his Pontificate, Benedict XVI
was missed today by the faithful who came to St. Peter's Square anyway.


The emeritus Pope led his first Angelus as Pope from his study window on the third floor of the Apostolic Palace
on May 1, 2005, feast of St. Joseph (who is the Universal Patron of the Church) as Patron of Laborers, and
the first of Benedict XVI's name saints.

Top panel: The Angelus on May 1, 2005, in which the banner hanging from the window still carries John Paul II's coat of arms; right, the Angelus on May 8, 2005, when the new Pope's coat of arms were first inveiled.


P.S. I realize now that in the first several months of the Pontificate, all of us who joined forums dedicated to the new Pope with alacrity and became initiated into the technical aspects of 'posting' were all so drunk with the wealth of photos available daily of a man we all started to call IL BELLISSIMO and 'the most beautiful man in the world' that we copied the photos onto the Forums almost indiscriminately - but copying them using the original source links, not realizing at the time that the source photos would be taken offline eventually in many cases soon) by the sources themselves, so the links have become completely useless. We have since learned to save the photos to our own PC and upload them to photo servers so we can post them sith some certainty that as long as Photobucket and Image Shack are not out of business, the photos we have posted will stay posted . It is with great heartache that I have gone back to the FOTO DA PAPA section of Ratzigirl's PAPA RATZINGER FORUM - the most popular go-to site at the time for all photos of B!6 as B16 and in his earlier life - to find page after page of blanks in place of photos that are no longer online. The absence of the photos is even more teeth-gnashing because one reads all the effusive comments referring to them! (Luckily in the first year, I took to printing the photos daily, even if only in B&W, including the effusions, and it all makes for a really joyous lookback, but also sad in that one now notices the aging B16 has gone through in eight years, something we really did not notice very much because we have seen new photos of him almost everyday, and because even now, there are moments when he photographs very well and looks as ageless as he was when he first captured our hearts in 2005... I could not find any photos of the first Angelus either in PRF or in the Ratzinger FanClub forum, and found the three photos above from the site of stpetersbasilica.org, and the photos carry a date (as do the captions on the site). The May 1 and May 8 photos, taken by two different photo agencies, have such different exposures that with my limited Photo-Pro skills, I am unable to homogenize them.

[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 04/03/2013 05:01]

Benedict's resignation:
The hints were there all along
By NICOLE WINFIELD


VATICAN CITY, March 2 (AP) — Benedict XVI stunned the world when he announced Feb. 11 he would resign as Pope. But in retrospect, all the signs were there, and they even accelerated in recent months. Here's a look at the hints Benedict dropped starting in 2005, his first year as Pope, indicating that unlike his predecessors over 600 years, his papacy would end in retirement, not death.

—In his first encyclical "God is Love" — published eight months after he was elected — Benedict wrote about service: "It is God who governs the world, not we. We offer him our service only to the extent that we can, and for as long as he grants us the strength."

—In 2009, Benedict prayed at the tomb of Celestine V, the hermit Pope who stepped down after five months as Pope in 1294, simply too overwhelmed by the job. [Not just that he was 'too overwhelmed' but he had lived all his 80 years before being elected ope in absentia as a hermit monk and could simply not deal with a papal court that was also deeply enmeshed in the secular politics of the time] Benedict also placed on the tomb [not the tomb, the glass urn containing Celestine's remains] the pallium, or wool stole, that he received during his 2005 installation Mass as Pope — a powerful symbol and a tip-off that he would follow Celestine's footsteps.

—Five years after his first encyclical, in the 2010 book "Light of the World," Benedict made his views about the limits of strength more explicit, and personal. "If a Pope clearly realizes that he is no longer physically, psychologically and spiritually capable of handling the duties of his office, then he has a right, and under some circumstances, also an obligation to resign."

—In March 2012, according to the Vatican newspaper, he decided to resign after an exhausting trip to Mexico and Cuba. He told only a handful of people, and the only visible sign for those in the know would come seven months later when renovations began on the monastery in the Vatican gardens where he will live.

—In June, the Vatican appointed Fox News correspondent Greg Burke as a senior media adviser in the secretariat of state, perhaps anticipating the crush of media interest in all things Vatican. Burke has become a much sought-after television commentator in recent weeks.

—In November, Benedict created six new cardinals — not a single one from Italy or Europe — making a very international final mark on the club that would elect his successor.

—In December, he received the final report of the commission of cardinals investigating the leaks of his personal papers and he pardoned the butler who stole them, closing a chapter on an embarrassing and damaging scandal so that his successor wouldn't have to deal with it. He has, however, left it for the new Pope to decide what to do with the report.

—In December, he named his closest aide Monsignor Georg Gaenswein to be head of the papal household and promoted him to an archbishop, thus assuring his future career after Benedict was no longer Pope.

—In January, he consolidated the Vatican's media accreditation operations, perhaps in anticipation of the throngs of journalists converging on Rome for the conclave.

—Also in January, he named a new director of the Vatican's television operations, which are being heavily taxed by the demands of the resignation and conclave. The appointment relieved the Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, of one of his three main jobs and enabled him to focus exclusively on his role as spokesman and head of Vatican Radio.

—And in late January or early February, the Vatican reportedly halted the presses of the Annuario Pontificio, the Holy See's annual yearbook, which normally is printed in early February for publication in March. The book, which in 2012 ran some 2,435 pages, is now not due out until May, La Stampa newspaper reported.

[This is off-topic, but one must thank the new CTV head, fr. Edoardo Vigano, a cinema expert, who is credited for the meticulous coverage of Benedict's final day as Pope which included following his helicopter for the whole length of the flight to Castel Gandolfo - unprecedented in the coverage of any VIP departure I can think of! Even the drives of the papalmotorcade from the apostolic Palace to the Vatican heliport, and then from the Castel Gandolfo heliport to the Apostolic Palace, were very thoughtfully planned and shown to us so that we really felt we were taking part in 'sending off' Benedict XVI - also giving us an idea of the geography of the Vatican Gardens and Castel Gandolfo. Plus such hitherto unshown preludes to the Pope's public appearance, such as the walk from the papal elevator to the San Damaso entrance of the Apostolic Palace, and the later and longer walk to the outside balcony of the Apostolic Palace in Castel Gandolfo. Both walks were without a doubt the most poignant images of Benedict XVI's final days in the public eye because we could see the visible toll it took on him just to walk those short distances - and then, how he collects himself just before emerging to public view and manages to present himself to the public as they have always seen him... Magnificent to the very 'end', which is not really an end.]

As for the 'hints' to retirement, I am still awaiting an article by Antonio Socci to explain why he wrote that highly contested article in Eept. 2010, when Benedict XVI was ending his state visit to Germany, to say that the Pope was planning to resign 'soon'. One would think he might have written something gloating, but he hasn't so far. At least not that I am aware of...

Personnally, even if I was struck by that gesture of the pallium for Celestine - and the fact that Celestine's remains were brought to Sulmona and placed on the altar stage for Benedict's Mass - it never even occurred to me that B16 might follow Cestine's example. Even after he made the statements to Peter Seewald in 2010, I continued to think it was a theoretical possibility that he may have thought about long and hard as a possible course for a Pope during the final years of John Paul II's life, never thinking he would become Pope himself, but that if he had to apply it at all to his own case, that would not be soon at all! Basically, of course, I had been resisting all along to think of what might be, of how all of us who love him would deal with losing him, so I continued to entertain the thought and pray that he could live as long as Leo XIII did. And he may yet do so, only not as Pope gloriously reigning, but as retired Pope who has now added yet another historical dimension to his already historic Pontificate.
___

When Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, Archbishop of Lyons (France) was asked recently about the coming Conclave, he replied that "After Benedict XVI, there are no giants left...But it doesn't matter that his successor will not be a giant like the two who preceded him - the office does not necessarily require giants". At about the same time, Fr. Joseph Fessio, SJ, who had been a doctoral student of Professor Ratzinger, called Benedict XVI 'the last of the giants', which is the reference picked up by Carl Olson in this essay written on the day Benedict XVI's Pontificate ended.

Benedict XVI:
Last of the giants?
by Carl Olson
Editor

February 28, 2013

This morning, as I watched live video of Pope Benedict XVI flying from the Vatican to the Castel Gandolfo, I felt, for the first time really, a deep sense of sadness. As the Holy Father stepped from the helicopter, his fatigue and frailty appeared quite obvious, even while his gaze seemed as focused and intent as ever. Then, a few moments later, he appeared on the balcony to make his final, brief address as pontiff.

“You know that today is different from others”, he said, “as of eight pm I will no longer be the Supreme Pontiff of the Catholic Church. I will simply be a pilgrim who is beginning the last part of his pilgrimage on earth.”

Those familiar with the writings Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI will recall the collection of his essays, Pilgrim Fellowship of Faith: The Church as Communion (Ignatius Press, 2005), presented to Cardinal Ratzinger on the occasion of his 75th birthday.

The title and subtitle captures, in just eight words, an essential focus of the thought and work of Ratzinger. In his final general audience, given two days ago, Benedict thanked those who had written him notes in recent weeks, reflecting on the meaning of those gestures of love and support:In this you can touch what the Church is—not an organization, not an association for religious or humanitarian ends, but a living body, a communion of brothers and sisters in the Body of Jesus Christ who unites us all.

Experiencing the Church in this way and being able to almost touch with our hands the strength of His truth and His love is a reason for joy at a time when many are speaking of its decline. See how the Church is alive today!That passage came to mind as I watched the FOX broadcast of events at the Vatican and Castel Gandolfo. One of the reporters, who was obviously a Catholic, was asked a question about the heart of the Catholic Faith: what is it?

She referenced the Church’s rich intellectual tradition and the Church’s stand for human rights, but she never mentioned the person of Jesus Christ. This stood out to me because Benedict himself, since announcing his resignation, has spoken several times about the relationship between Jesus Christ and his Church, a relationship that is all about a communion of life and love.

Perhaps the best example of this can be found in his lengthy and fascinating address to priests and clergy on February 14th, a talk that might be described as a papal history of Vatican II:

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Yet only after the Council did an element come to light – which can also be found, albeit in a hidden way, in the Council itself – namely this: the link between People of God and Body of Christ is precisely communion with Christ in Eucharistic fellowship. This is where we become the Body of Christ: the relationship between People of God and Body of Christ creates a new reality – communion.

After the Council it became clear, I would say, that the Council really discovered and pointed to this concept: communion as the central concept. I would say that, philologically, it is not yet fully developed in the Council, yet it is as a result of the Council that the concept of communion came more and more to be the expression of the Church’s essence, communion in its different dimensions: communion with the Trinitarian God – who is himself communion between Father, Son and Holy Spirit – sacramental communion, and concrete communion in the episcopate and in the life of the Church.

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[I still feel levitated when I think back on that truly amazing lectio magistralis. I dare anyone of the leading Vatican II 'spiritists' to match the clarity, cogency and linearity of that extemporaneous 45-minute 'history and essence of Vatican II' presentation, a brilliant and breathtaking example of what Joseph Ratzinger's students called his 'print-ready' lectures on theology that he delivered without notes. Here is an exceptional scholar retiring at age 86 with his mental powers as sharp as ever even if his physical abilities have waned so fast.]

II.

Eucharist. Communion with Christ. Communion with the Trinitarian God.

If I had to list the top three reasons that I entered the Catholic Church on Easter Vigil 1997, those would more than suffice. These are realities that suffuse the work of Joseph Ratzinger and the pontificate of Pope Benedict XVI, and they should, it goes without saying (but needs to be said, sadly) be the realities that suffuse the lives of every Catholic.

I've never met Ratzinger/Benedict in person, but I first encountered him through two books: one short and reflective, the other long and doctrinal. The first was Daughter Zion: Meditations on the Church’s Marian Beliefs (Ignatius Press, 1983), a book that impressed with me its biblical erudition, to the point that I could only conclude the author not only knew Scripture, he truly lived and breathed it. Needless to say, that conclusion has only deepened over the years, especially in light of the three Jesus of Nazarethbooks, as well as the important 2010 apostolic exhortation, Verbum Domini. [Olson has been one of the very few secular commentators who have appreciated Verbum Domini for the masterpiece that it is, perhaps even greater than Benedict XVI's other great doctrinal Apostolic Exhortation, Sacramentum caritatis.]

The second book was the Catechism of the Catholic Church, of which he was co-editor. It was, after the Bible, the most important book for my wife and I in making the journey into the Catholic Church.

It cleared away many misconceptions and deepened my understanding of the organic connections, if you will, between the many beliefs and practices of the Church. The Catechism is notable at this moment because it was, in so many ways, a marvelous example of how Bl. John Paul II and Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger worked together to proclaim and explain Catholic doctrine and practice, as well as to carry out the real mission of the Second Vatican Council, which both attended as theological experts. [No, Mr. Olson - Karol Wojyla was a Council Father, being the Archbishop of Cracow at the time, while Joseph Ratzinger was 'only' one of the many expert consultants to the Council Fathers.]

If Cardinal Ratzinger had not been elected Pope, he would still be recognized as one of the most significant Catholic theologians of the past half-century. The many discussions of Benedict’s pontificate must take into account, without doubt, his numerous pre-papal writings, which are the (unplanned, of course) foundation and framework for the many writings and addresses of his relatively short pontificate.

For example, Benedict’s motu proprio opening the way for the common, widespread celebration of the extraordinary form of the Latin Mass did not come out of thin air, as a reading of his Spirit of the Liturgy (Ignatius Press, 2000) amply indicates.

His many and varied examinations of secularism, modernity, and relativism were not reactionary or out of character, but the fruit of decades of study and reflection, as can be seen in books such as Introduction to Christianity (orig. 1968) and Truth and Tolerance (Ignatius Press, 2004).

In a similar way, his Jesus of Nazareth books pick up and flesh out themes found in the 2000 declaration, Dominus Iesus, issued when he was prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. [The occasion was the Great Jubilee of 2000, celebrating two millennia of Christianity.]

III.

After Benedict’s election in 2005, it was clear that few journalists and pundits had seriously read and studied his pre-papal writings. So it wasn’t a surprise, I suppose, that most weren’t sure how to handle something such as Deus Caritas Est, which puzzled one New York Times journalist so much that he wrote, as if stunned, “The encyclical, titled ‘God Is Love,’ did not mention abortion, homosexuality, contraception or divorce, issues that often divide Catholics.” Shocking!

How could it be that a man who had written learned books and essays on Church history, Augustinian thought, Enlightenment philosophy, post-modernism, Scripture scholarship, liturgical renewal, ecumenism, inter-religious dialogue, eschatology, ecclesiology, the sacraments, faith and reason, political philosophy, and Church-state relations fail to live down to media expectations? Puzzling, without a doubt.

The general state of affairs hasn’t changed much, especially when the Times trots out Hans Küng for another round of narcissistic papal bashing:

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In 2005, in one of Benedict’s few bold actions, he held an amicable four-hour conversation with me at his summer residence in Castel Gandolfo in Rome. I had been his colleague at the University of Tübingen and also his harshest critic. For 22 years, thanks to the revocation of my ecclesiastical teaching license for having criticized papal infallibility, we hadn’t had the slightest private contact. … For me, and indeed for the whole Catholic world, the meeting was a sign of hope. ut sadly Benedict’s pontificate was marked by breakdowns and bad decisions. [Kueng deliberately frames his statement such that any reader unfamiliar with his story would conclude it was Joseph Ratzinger who revoked his license to teach Catholic theology, when in fact, it was revoked by the CDF in 1979, three years before Joseph Ratzinger came to Rome to head the CDF.]

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“For the whole Catholic world”? Really? Being accused of insular thinking and “breakdowns” by Hans Küng is like being accused of doping by Lance Armstrong. Especially since Küng plays very loose with facts and misrepresents a number of serious things, such as when he writes, “There was the widespread sexual abuse of children and youths by clergymen, which the Pope was largely responsible for covering up when he was Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.” [I've always suspected that Kueng stopped saying Mass decades ago, or perhaps does not even go to Mass at all. Because if he did, he would not be lying as flagrantly and as frequently as the odious Obama!'

That is simply slanderous, but give Küng credit: he knows his audience isn’t into facts, but into reacting, fuming, venting, and even hating. And then there is this wishful claim: “One shouldn’t be misled by the media hype of grandly staged papal Mass events or by the wild applause of conservative Catholic youth groups. Behind the facade, the whole house is crumbling.”

Benedict, of course, has a different perspective. His perspective is not different because he is a company man, or because he is power hungry, or because he is a hater, but because he, unlike Küng, places his faith in Someone greater than himself (I’m not sure Küng can envision such a person). As he told the College of Cardinals this morning:

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I have let a phrase of Romano Guardini help me. It was written in the very same year that the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council approved the Constitution Lumen Gentium. In his last book, Guardini says, the Church “is not an institution conceived and built in theory... but a living reality.... She lives through the course of time, in becoming, like every living being, in changing.... And yet in her nature she remains ever the same, and her heart is Christ”.

It seems to me that this was our experience yesterday, in St. Peter's Square: seeing that the Church is a living body, enlivened by the Holy Spirit and which is really brought to life by God's power. She is in the world but not of the world: she is of God, of Christ, of the Spirit. We saw this yesterday.

That is why Guardini's other famous saying is both true and eloquent: “The Church reawakens in souls”. The Church is alive, she grows and is reawakened in souls who – like the Virgin Mary – welcome the Word of God and conceive it through the action of the Holy Spirit; they offer to God their own flesh.

It is precisely in their poverty and humility that they become capable of begetting Christ in the world today. Through the Church, the Mystery of the Incarnation lives on for ever. Christ continues to walk through the epochs and in all places.

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In June 1970, Fr. Ratzinger gave an address in Munich titled, “Why I Am Still in the Church” (published in Fundamental Speeches from Five Decades [Ignatius Press, 2012]).

It is essential reading, but one point will suffice: Ratzinger argues that the modern obsession with remaking the Church in our image, in accord with our desires and agendas, finally comes down to one key problem: “the crisis of faith”. He said,

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There is ultimately no opposition between Christ and the Church. … I am in the Church for the same reasons that I am a Christian in the first place. For one cannot believe alone. One can believe only as a fellow believer.

… Faith is ecclesial, or it is not faith. … A faith of one’s own devising is an oxymoron. For a self-made faith would only vouch for and be able to say what I already am known anyway; it could not go beyond the boundary of my ego. Hence a self-made Church, a faith community that creates itself, that exists by its own graces, is also an oxymoron. Although faith demands communion, it is the sort of communion that has authority and takes the lead, not the sort that is my own creation, the instrument of my own wishes.

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For eight years, Benedict XVI consistently pointed toward the Church and her head, Jesus Christ. Meanwhile, Hans Küng and Company play pointless games in the sandbox. And the sand is running out.

IV.

Judging Benedict XVI’s pontificate is a difficult thing to do, hardly possible on the day it has ended. The key question is: what criteria will be used to judge, and who will do the judging? With that in mind, I conclude this essay with two quotes, both from Mark Brumley, President of Ignatius Press, from whom I learned so much about John Paul II’s thought (when Mark was my professor in the late 1990s) and who has worked so tirelessly to bring the writings of Ratzinger/Benedict XVI to English-speaking readers throughout the world.

First, in a 2005 interview with ZENIT, Mark was asked, “What will Pope Benedict XVI bring of himself and his theological interests to the pontificate?” He replied:

Although Ratzinger the prefect is distinguishable from Ratzinger the theologian, we are blessed in Pope Benedict XVI with a theologian and pastor who has thought and prayed long and hard about Jesus Christ, the Church and her mission to the world.

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He will, I believe, continue the twofold task of Vatican II -- renewing the inner life of the Church and reinvigorating the Church's mission in the world. He is committed to a renewal of biblical studies and a deepening of ordinary Catholics' appreciation of and participation in the sacred liturgy.

He staunchly proclaims the universal call to holiness of Vatican II. He understands the importance of dialogue among Christians and dialogue with world religions and seekers, while he upholds the integrity of Catholic faith and insists on a renewed missionary drive to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world.

And he knows that in the areas of morality and social justice, the Christian message has not been tried and found wanting, as G.K. Chesterton noted, but has been found difficult and left untried. Furthermore, he sees the threat of radical relativism and many other "isms."

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And today, in a press release, Mark states:

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Although Pope Benedict's pontificate has been relatively short, he has accomplished a great deal amidst profound challenges, both within the Church and in the world.

By stressing the "hermeneutic of reform" in contrast to the "hermeneutic of rupture," he has shown the way forward in clarifying the relationship between the Second Vatican Council and the Church's Tradition.

He has presented clearly, forcefully, thoughtfully, and winsomely "the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3), and he has strengthened the Church's efforts to evangelize the world.

He has sought to deepen the renewal of the Church's worship and sacramental life by fostering a recovery of "the spirit of the liturgy."

He has appointed and elevated men to the episcopate who perceive the importance of an authentic understanding of the Second Vatican Council, in light of the Church's Tradition and the "joy and hope, the grief and anguish" of our world (cf. Gaudium et Spes, no. 1).

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Fr. Joseph Fessio, SJ, in reflecting on the (now completed) pontificate, spoke of Benedict as the “last of the giants”, referencing the great ressourcement theologians — De Lubac, von Balthasar, Danielou — who had so much to do with Catholic theology in the twentieth century and in shaping the work of the Council.

I think it is an apt description, for Ratzinger is certainly a theological giant. But, as with John Paul II, what continues to impress most is his deep and obvious love for Christ and the Catholic Church. Few of us will be great theologians or popes, but all of us can love the Lord and his Mystical Body.

Again, that is what it is all about: Eucharist. Communion with Christ. Communion with the Trinitarian God.

May God bless His Holiness Benedict XVI, Pope Emeritus of the Catholic Church!

I have been rather random in posting the tributes to Benedict XVI and the assessments of his Pontificate - I continue to be rather dysfunctional because of inability to cope with a situation that I had accepted immediately but which I am having trouble to truly assimilate. So in the case of Mr. Olson, I must add here his first formal reaction to the 'great renunciation' in an editorial for CWR.


Benedict XVI steps onstage for his last meeting with the clergy of Rome on February 14, 2013.

A figure of impossibility
The pontificate of Benedict XVI has been a short,
bracing, and often surprising journey in discipleship.
Editorial
by Carl Olson

February 16, 2013

“The rejection of the primacy of St. Peter has driven men on to a slippery course, where all the steps are downwards.”— Lord Acton

It has been quite a week. My head is still spinning, and I'm sure that only half of it is due to the flu, fever, and medication I've been fighting, enduring, and imbibing (respectively) since last Sunday afternoon.

I.

Where to start? How about with the head of the Catholic Church?

Consider: He is brilliant, yet enigmatic. Some find him inspiring; others think he is frightening. Some insist his reign is the result of mythology, superstition, and ignorance. Others claim he is the personification of humility, service, and true charity.

In some corners, he is rejected for his politically incorrect views about marriage and sexuality, and his insistence that only certain men, no women at all, can be priests or bishops. His talk of sin and of eternal judgment has upset many, but his call to discipleship, sacrifice, and humble worship resonates with countless millions.

But there has often been talk of scandal. One of those closest to him betrayed his trust, exposing him to ridicule. There was even talk of arrest and prosecution. Some within his inner circle have apparently been more interested in pursuing power than in service. He is, in short, controversial—a lightning rod for debate, discussion and, sadly, division.

Yes, I think you get what I'm getting at and the man I am describing: Jesus of Nazareth, The Head of the Catholic Church. He is central to the events of the past week for many reasons, not least because he established the Church, founded the papacy upon the petra of the flawed fisherman Petros, and promised to preserve the Church against the gates of Hades, never mind the flailing assaults of clueless pundits and minor heretics.

This same crucified and risen Jesus, of course, is central to the thought, work, and life of his current Vicar of Rome, Pope Benedict XVI. It’s not that previous pontiffs haven’t loved Christ deeply and fully—far from it.

But, to give just one obvious example, Joseph Ratzinger’s Jesus of Nazareth “trilogy”, written during his eight short years as Pope, was a rather unusual enterprise. It tells us something essential about the man, to the degree that Fr. James Martin, SJ, suggests, with merit, that the three books may prove to be Benedict’s “greatest legacy”.

There has already been much talk of Benedict’s “legacy”. I suspect that many Americans think of a legacy in terms of “what something or someone means to me”, that is, in ways mostly subjective, personal, and quite immediate.

There is a partial truth to this perspective, but by itself it misses the deep sense of continuity and inheritance implicit in the word “legacy”, which derives from the Latin words (legatia, legatus) referring to a body of persons — ambassadors — sent on a particular mission.

The word “mission” is a significant one in Catholic theology, used to refer to the missions of the three Divine Persons, supernatural and saving missions “which are continued in the mission of the Church” (CCC, 257). Mission, in other words, flows from Trinitarian communion, which in turn shapes the communion of the Church, which then goes forth with her missio, sent to proclaim the Gospel and to make disciples of all nations.

In short, the greatest legacy of any Pope is that he upholds, promotes, carries out, encourages, explains, desires, seeks, and proclaims this mission, which is simply the constant, insistent invitation to accept God’s freely offered gift of “the glory of his blessed life” (CCC, 257; cf. 1), that is, communion with the Triune God. Or, as the Holy Father put in his final homily, given on Ash Wednesday:

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May the invitation to conversion, to “return to God with all our heart”, resonate strongly in us, accepting His grace that makes us new men and women, with the surprising news that is participating in the very life of Jesus.

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This legacy, it goes without saying, is not of much interest to the networks and the news shapers.

II.

My point is that if we begin by accepting the criteria of the world, we will not only see Benedict’s pontificate through warped and soiled lenses, we will struggle to see the bigger picture, not just the panorama of Church history, but of salvation history.

The Church certainly struggles today, as she has struggled every single day since her founding. But the Church also thinks in terms of decades and centuries. More importantly, the Church truly lives for and, finally, in eternity. Only the faithful can read and savor and marvel at this startling passage:

Christians of the first centuries said, “The world was created for the sake of the Church.” God created the world for the sake of communion with his divine life, a communion brought about by the “convocation” of men in Christ, and this “convocation” is the Church.

The Church is the goal of all things, and God permitted such painful upheavals as the angels’ fall and man’s sin only as occasions and means for displaying all the power of his arm and the whole measure of the love he wanted to give the world… (CCC, 760)

I emphasize the above because, having now read far too many pieces about Benedict’s renouncement of the papal office, I am fairly resigned (pun intended!) to the fact that most of the talk and conversation — certainly in the secular media — will be about intrigue, scandal, secrecy, power, politics, and so forth. It’s expected; it doesn’t surprise me and, surprisingly, it doesn’t even really upset me (yes, that’s how under the weather I am). What else but personalities, politics, and power will pundits discuss when all they know are personalities, politics, and power?

Sadly, even those who should know better apparently do not. In an essay, “As Vatican leader Pope Benedict never had a chance” (Feb. 11, 2013), John Moody, Executive Vice President and Executive Editor at Fox News, broke the shocking news that Benedict XVI “was not John Paul II.” This was, he insists, “an insurmountable problem”, ramping up a strange and wildly skewed game of “JPII vs. B16” (no word yet about a possible phone app).

Among Benedict’s alleged failures: “He did not unite the conservative and progressive wings of the Catholic Church.” Perhaps I missed it, but neither did Blessed John Paul II, and his pontificate was a bit longer than Benedict’s.

More to the point, there is the reality of the Church itself — the matter of the wheat and tares, a deeply meaningful image that dates back to a man who prayed for unity among his disciples (Jn 17) but also said he came to “set the earth on fire” and to establish “division” (Lk 12:51ff).

Establish division? Would a meek and mild and cajoling Jesus ever do such a thing? Of course not. But the true and living Jesus Christ surely would, and did, and does.

Moody’s piece, in the end, is a disturbing exercise in the cult of personality, as obsessed with John Paul II’s obvious external abilities as he with Benedict’s supposed failure to develop a winning smile: “His smile, though genuine, looked somehow sinister, as if he were about to bite his audience.” [The man is clearly mad. How can a smile so cherubic and angelic and truly 'sweet' be sinister?]

The usual news pieces made certain to highlight controversies and criticisms. Nothing wrong with that, but the tone in some suggests that any hint of controversy or actions drawing criticism is bad form. One wonders: has there ever been a Pope and papacy free of controversy or criticism? (I, for one, hope not!) [No, but from reading the run-of-the-MSM-mill, one would think everything bad about the Church originated in his Pontificate! And this, not just among the openly hostile, biased and uninformed media, but even among many Catholic writers who think that they are thereby being 'objective'!] ]

One bit of Benedict’s history that has now been worked into a well-polished media nugget is the Regensburg Address, which is presented as a heady pontiff failing to appreciate the sensitivities of the time. For example, from a February 12th Wall Street Journalpiece:

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Pope Benedict's efforts to address the cultural divisions between Islam and Christianity briefly stirred controversy in 2006 when the pontiff delivered an academic speech that quoted a Byzantine emperor making deprecating remarks about the Prophet Muhammad. A wave of deadly riots washed across the Muslim world, prompting an apology from the Pope.

The address was about culture, but it was about much more: the theological and philosophical roots of culture, and how flawed understandings of God’s nature have far-reaching and often serious, even deadly, implications.

And Benedict’s apology was a small revelation in itself, for he didn’t retract anything he had said: “At this time, I wish also to add that I am deeply sorry for the reactions in some countries to a few passages of my address at the University of Regensburg, which were considered offensive to the sensibility of Muslims.”.

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Unfortunately, the violent actions of various Islamic groups following the address only validated Benedict’s argument — a point ignored by virtually all non-Catholic news outlets.

In many cases, Benedict could never “win”, and I doubt he was ever blind to his difficult situation. Throughout his pontificate, he has been criticized by many for being heavy-handed and authoritarian. Then again, he has been derided for being weak, timid, and incapable of handling the reins of the wild steed named “the Vatican”.

Surely only a man of diverse and inscrutable talents could be both so powerful and so weak! Most people have been fed a series of images—either visual or painted with words—portraying Benedict XVI as out of touch, backwards, narrow-minded, reactionary, anti-woman, and so forth.

As Ryan N. S. Topping notes in his exceptional new book, Rebuilding Catholic Culture (Sophia, 2012), “Each age nurses its own vices; one of ours is to substitute images for ideas. … But the study of doctrine, to reduce principles merely to politics would be simply to miss a great deal. … Theology is, ultimately, the study not of personalities but of reality — in fact the most real reality of all.” That "real reality" has always been Benedict's focus; it's hardly his fault that the world is overrun by hordes of delicately scented barbarians who care not one whit about the same.

III.

I’ve learned over the years that more than a few people who express a vague admiration for John Paul II actually know little or nothing about his writings and teachings. They are attracted to him — or to a particular image of him they have obtained through one media source or another. But, then, the rich young ruler was also attracted to Jesus. The essential question, always, is: will you take up the Cross? Will you follow the Master?

Following an attractive image with your eyes for a few moments is not the same as following Christ to the very end. Which is one reason why the public death, so to speak, of John Paul II was such a profound witness: the once handsome and dynamic Pope did not shy away from showing his feeble, anguished figure and face to the world. Benedict has taken a different route. Why? Fr. George Rutler offers some beautifully expressed insights:

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As everyone dies, it was important that John Paul defied the aimless Culture of Death by showing how to die, but that witness also came at the cost of care of the churches. There were times then when the Church Militant seemed in freefall, and the man who then was Cardinal Ratzinger must have anguished much in silence.

… A most attractive charism of Benedict XVI has been his desire to vanish so that the faithful might see only Christ: “cupio dissolvi.” He strengthened the papacy by vaulting sanctity over celebrity. In a grand paradox, nothing in him has become so conspicuous as his desire to disappear.

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Cardinal Francis Arinze put it more directly, but just as well. “Our faith is not in thePpope,” he said shortly after Benedict’s announcement, “it is in Christ… So this event can help all of us to be deeper in our faith. To be, shall we say, less sentimental.”

The last bit is more important than it might appear initially. Benedict XVI is, by all accounts, a very warm and personable man, but I’ve never heard the word “sentimental” associated with him. The fact is, we live not in the Information Age, but in the Sentimental Age, driven not by good thinking, tested prudence, or treasured wisdom, but by sentiments, feelings, emotions. Everywhere we turn, there are voices and texts and tweets flooding us with feelings and opinions.

But what of truth? Of reason? It says volumes (literally, if printed) that the greatest champion of reason today, the Vicar of Christ, is judged and mocked as “unreasonable” by a world that scorns reason like a junkie scorns rehab.

Those who deny the transcendent and who wish to make (or re-make) man in their own image cannot and will not engage with this voice of reason for the simple reason that they will not stand to be exposed for the charlatans they are. As Samuel Gregg put it in an excellent post, “Benedict XVI: Reason’s Revolutionary”:

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But we need to remember that Benedict XVI is arguably the most intellectual pope to sit in Peter’s Chair for centuries — even more so than his saintly predecessor, who was certainly no slouch in the world of ideas.

And if there is one single thing that stands out in Benedict’s papacy, it’s this: his laser-like focus on the root-cause of the intellectual crisis that explains not only Western culture’s present wallowing in facile relativism that’s on full display in the content-free rhetoric of your average EU politician, but also the trauma that explains the violence and rage that continues to shake the Islamic world and which Islam seems incapable of resolving on its own terms.

And that problem is one of reason. As Benedict spelt out in four key addresses that repay careful re-reading — the famous 2006 Regensburg lecture, his 2008 address to the French intellectual world, his speech to the Bundestag in 2011, and his remarks to the world of British politics in 2010 in Westminster Hall (the site, not coincidentally, of St Thomas More’s show-trial in 1535)—man, especially Western man, has lost confidence in reason’s power to know more-than-empirical truth.

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Personally, I have benefited most deeply from Benedict’s explication of Scripture and his analysis of the current intellectual and spiritual crises. I don’t see the two as somehow separate from another; on the contrary, I find Benedict’s penetrating and nuanced apprehension of the failings of our age to be rooted in a deeply biblical vision of God and man, creation and society, family and politics, Church and state.

The first Ratzinger book I ever read was Daughter Zion, and after reading it, I realized the author did not just know Scripture, but breathed it. He is a man who loves and lives the Word of God.

IV.

"The figure of Peter is an impossibility, made possible only by the will of the One who created him.” So wrote Fr. Hans Urs von Balthasar in The Office of Peter and the Structure of the Church (Ignatius, 1986).

At some point, in some way, we have to distinguish between the man and the office. Every man who has been given the office has had flaws and failures; some of them, we must admit, have been rogues and even vile sinners. But the Petrine office, gifted by Jesus Christ, endures precisely because of the grace and power of the Head of the Church. And what does Christ ask of Peter? “Simon, do you love me?” (Jn 21).

In a May 2006 audience, Benedict XVI remarked on the thrice-repeated question from Jesus, saying, “Simon understands that his poor love is enough for Jesus, it is the only one of which he is capable, nonetheless he is grieved that the Lord spoke to him in this way. He thus replies: ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you (filo-se)’.” And:

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From that day, Peter "followed" the Master with the precise awareness of his own fragility; but this understanding did not discourage him. Indeed, he knew that he could count on the presence of the Risen One beside him.

From the naïve enthusiasm of initial acceptance, passing though the sorrowful experience of denial and the weeping of conversion, Peter succeeded in entrusting himself to that Jesus who adapted himself to his poor capacity of love. And in this way he shows us the way, notwithstanding all of our weakness. We know that Jesus adapts himself to this weakness of ours.

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Benedict has recognized his weakness and, without any sentimentality or political posturing, is handing the office back to the One who founded it.

He knows that he was Peter for a while only by the will of the One who created him, and he trusts completely that the Church, however battered and embattled today, will carry on toward the eschaton precisely because of the will, grace, and love of Jesus Christ, the Head of the Church.