A big
shocker for fellow Roman Catholics this morning, Pope Benedict has announced
that he will step down on February 28th.
The
85-year-old pope, the Successor of Saint Peter, says he has become to frail to
fulfill the ministry entrusted to him.
Benedict
has suffered a number of heath scares including a stroke in 1991. He succeeded
John Paul II in April 2005.
Pope
Benedict's selection as Pope was a controversial. He is a Conservative
taking firm stances on conception, abortion and euthanasia. As a youth, he
served, as was mandatory, in the Hitler Youth.
It has been
centuries since a Pope abdicated the role.
It is
expected that his successor will be selected by the College of Cardinals by
Easter Sunday. All of the elector-Cardinals were appointed by John Paul II and
Benedict XVI. Cardinals lose their vote after age 80. Half of all
cardinal-electors (67 out of 125) are Europeans.
There is a
strong potential that the next pope could be a Canadian. Cardinal Marc Ouellet is
a strong contender. The 67 year-old Prefect of the Congregation for
Bishops, is formerly Archbishop of Quebec. He speaks English, French,
Portuguese, Italian, Spanish and German fluently.
The front
runner to replace Benedict is Cardinal
Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson of Ghana.
The 63 year old is President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.
Other contenders
include: Cardinal Angelo Scola, The 70 year-old Arch-Bishop of Milan; 77 year-old
Cardinal Tarsicio Bertone who is the Vatican’s Secretary of State; and American
Cardinal Timothy Dolan, 62. He is the Archbishop of New York.
The season
of Lent begins this Wednesday.
2 comments:
they'll have to work out a retirement package...I doubt they have one at this time...
If anyone read about Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger before he became Pope Benedict XVI, he told the late Pope John Paul II that he did not want to be pope, but Pope John Paul II nominated and recommended him anyway. He tried to fulfill the late pope's wishes and now he found a way out.
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