I think I might be too pragmatic (being of Prussian / Norwegian blood), but I can't warm up to the circus.
It's too much, too fast and too unstable.
Nobody knows what will happen next! And where? And why?
It seems that Pope Francis appeals to the crowd which could never warm up to B16 because he's so reserved (in the most endearing way) and cerebral and possibly never understood him. I think that's perfectly fine.
However! He's managed to unnerve MANY orthodox Catholics (I'm not talking about the über-trad crowd) like myself.
As a convert, I felt safe and protected by the small, shy, but rock-solid figure of B16. I would have walked through hell on his side - and I would have felt protected by his serenity, holiness and calm, solid strength.
Now, I'm afraid that the very difficult step I took - after years and years of conscience wrestling and loyalty sidestepping, might be turned into something meaningless by a left turn in the name of social justice! Protestantism is nothing but social justice! No liturgy, not tradition.... only social justice.
Küng's endorsement made me physically ill!
I'm scared!
Dearest Heike...
I'm still trying to work through the unending maelstrom of thoughts and sensations that have assailed me since February 11 but which have only gotten worse since March 13. Since when I have been stuck at the rage stage with all the uncharitable treatment of Benedict XVI by the media and those whose opinions they shape, but especially of the cardinals including those who were supposed to be his friends. In other words, I am still too angry to be scared.
One thing I do know - we must not be scared that our dearest Papino's legacy will be lost to history. It's only 'lost' right now in the short-term memory of those who think that anything new automatically cancels out anything that went before - the 'spirit of Vatican II' mentality is much more common than one thinks.
I have, of course, considered whether it wasn't time for me to 'chill out' already. To stop being personally offended and hyper-defensive about B16, in the face of the merciless and continuing denigration of him, open and implied, that seems to go on, especially with each new report about Pope Francis. Other than Cardinal Ouellet, all the other cardinals appear to have taken a vow of omerta never ever to refer to Benedict XVI again, God forbid, now that we have a new Pope.
Our Papino is probably the only once-Pope in recent memory that the so-called Princes of the Church have 'repudiated' so totally as the cardinals of the 2013 Conclave have done. When Benedict XVI became Pope, everyone continued to sing hosannas to John Paul II, and many in the media openly said the German Pope could never hope to even approach the stature and greatness of the Polish Pope. Fine! Afterwards, many of them had to eat their words. But all that is now forgotten...
If I was very punctilious about correcting or rebutting every lie, misinformation or misrepresentation of Benedict XVI when necessary in the items I posted, how can I stop now when it is so much worse and even more unfair?
Amy Welborn, a very wise person, posted a very brief message on her blog yesterday: "Pray away your agenda. Now. And just love."
I don't hate anyone. But the only love I am capable of right now for those who mistreat Benedict XVI so terribly is Christian love in the sense of not wishing ill of anybody. I denounce their words and opinions, but I have tried not to be ad hominem about it. I have no agenda, because I am no one - there is nothing I can say or do to change anything, other than prayer. Meanwhile, all I can do 'concretely' is to record my thoughts and feelings - and perhaps that is selfish indulgence. So be it.
We have a new Pope, I admire the virtues he has been shown to have, and I pray for him and the Church, as I have always prayed for the Pope and the Church. And I love him with the generic impersonal love I had for all the Popes in my lifetime before John Paul II and Benedict XVI. It's the love most Catholics have for the Pope, any Pope. In time, I may develop a personal affection for him, because he has a very engaging personality on top of an impressive Christian biography.
This personal involvement overwhelmed me instantaneously with the last two Popes the moment they stepped on to the central loggia of St. Peters. With far greater force for Benedict XVI than it had for John Paul II (something I had not thought possible at all). But despite my deep gratitude and surprise at the wonderful thoughtfulness of Pope Francis leading prayers for Benedict XVI that night of March 13, I did not feel that connection. Perhaps I am too invested in the extraordinary love I feel for Benedict XVI to be open to a new 'involvement'. Of course, none of this matters at all to anyone but me - what I feel, what one individual feels, cannot possibly dilute the universal deluge of love for Pope Francis. I just wish some of that love could also be directed to Benedict XVI.
I shall end by quoting a comment from one of Amy Welborn's followers:
Pope Benedict is as precious to me as my own grandfather. I love what one commentator correctly described as his gentle scholarliness, and I love the humility and love for God that float invisibly around him like a mantle.
No, he wasn’t perfect. Yes, he should have managed the Curia better. And, yes, I fully expect Pope Francis to be just as holy a pope as Benedict was – but also to make just as many mistakes, albeit likely different ones. Don’t we all?
As a relatively new Catholic, though, I have to say that all the harsh injustice that is being leveled at Benedict in the form of comparisons with Francis is the most painful, heartbreaking thing I have experienced since entering the Church.
TERESA
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 21/03/2013 19:13]