Pope Benedict's Abdication

Just listening to the surprising news that Benedict XVI is to resign at the end of this month.

Although commentators will be very quick to say that there is precedent (though 600 years old) for this and it's always been an option in Canon Law, this is a very progressive step.  As they statement says "both strength in body and mind is necessary" for the job. Nobody wants to see the long deterioration before death we saw with John Paul II and Paul VI.

This is a good thing, and it's very much a case 'of only Nixon could go to China'

My prayers are with him for a peaceful retirement.


The Pope's statement to the Cardinals in Consistory:-

Dear Brothers,

I have convoked you to this Consistory, not only for the three canonisations, but also to communicate to you a decision of great importance for the life of the Church. After having repeatedly examined my conscience before God, I have come to the certainty that my strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine ministry. I am well aware that this ministry, due to its essential spiritual nature, must be carried out not only with words and deeds, but no less with prayer and suffering. However, in today’s world, subject to so many rapid changes and shaken by questions of deep relevance for the life of faith, in order to govern the bark of Saint Peter and proclaim the Gospel, both strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the last few months, has deteriorated in me to the extent that I have had to recognise my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me. For this reason, and well aware of the seriousness of this act, with full freedom I declare that I renounce the ministry of Bishop of Rome, Successor of Saint Peter, entrusted to me by the Cardinals on 19 April 2005, in such a way, that as from 28 February 2013, at 20:00 hours, the See of Rome, the See of Saint Peter, will be vacant and a Conclave to elect the new Supreme Pontiff will have to be convoked by those whose competence it is.

Dear Brothers, I thank you most sincerely for all the love and work with which you have supported me in my ministry and I ask pardon for all my defects. And now, let us entrust the Holy Church to the care of Our Supreme Pastor, Our Lord Jesus Christ, and implore his holy Mother Mary, so that she may assist the Cardinal Fathers with her maternal solicitude, in electing a new Supreme Pontiff. With regard to myself, I wish to also devotedly serve the Holy Church of God in the future through a life dedicated to prayer.

From the Vatican, 10 February 2013

BENEDICTUS PP XVI

On the Papabili, Vaticanologists and Wikipedia

Preparing my obits round-up for next Friday, I had to check how to spell papabile.  Imagine my surprise to find out that that's it's got it's own Wikipedia entry!

Basically, it's a term invented by Vaticanologists to mean that one might be 'popeable' - that is likely to be elected pope.  Vaticanologists are like those 'constitutional historians' or 'royal biographers' the BBC wheels out every so often - like them, they range from the bonkers to the frankly useless and normally talk nonsense.

Wikipedia says that the most famous Vaticanologist was Peter Hebblethwaite - who my grandmother claimed wore a hole in her carpet playing snooker with my uncle.

'He who enters the Conclave as Pope, leaves it as a Cardinal'

Lists of papabili are mainly wishful thinking and tend to tell you more about the people who drew them up.  A example is Cardinal Martini, who has died aged 85 - he was touted in 2005 as the hope for liberal catholicism.  The fact that the new pope was being elected by a conclave consisting of electors appointed by a conservative pope meant nothing...

Cardinal Martini - considered papabile in 2005

I used to read a blog that would get over-excited when cardinals wore the cappa magna and Benedict XVI reintroduced the camauro.  It would love the picture of Martini in ermine.

I sometimes think that I've over-dependent on Wikipedia, but then I find that it has pages on Benedict's dress-sense and the world's largest collection of clerical hats.  Y'gotta love it!

Despite all this ecclesiastical queenery, I'm a liberal myself and would probably tend towards Martini's flavour of Catholicism...