P
Professor_Q
Guest
That’s an interesting perspective.
I think the “rock star Pope” phenomenon began with St. John Paul II, though there were some signs of it (such as Pope Paul VI addressing the United Nations) even earlier. Once that particular genie was out of the bottle, there was no putting it back it.
Benedict XVI, a more traditionally minded Pope, was clearly uncomfortable with this phenomenon: in his last book, I recall him saying that one of the reasons he abdicated was because he couldn’t take the “rock star lifestyle” (meaning the travel, glad-handing, etc.) any more, referring specifically to the upcoming World Youth Day.
As to his political views, I think (and I say this with utmost respect for the Pope) that they have been shaped by a rather provincial attitude, in which he sees most phenomena - even global ones - through the lens of Latin American politics and particularly the peculiar Argentine phenomenon known as Peronism, which cannot be easily classified as “right” or “left”. The Church and her Pontiffs have taken a variety of political positions over the years, and even successive Popes have had areas of disagreement (contrast Bl. Pius IX and Leo XIII, for example), and none of them is binding on the faithful unless they are authoritatively declared as such (for example, the 1949 decree of the Holy Office pronouncing automatic excommunication for officially belonging to the Communist Party).
Theologically, I think he personally finds the entire issue of doctrine rather tiresome and tends to delegate it to others (such as Kasper and Fernandez), who then, unfortunately, open the door to questionable ideas and practices. But, as St. Thomas Aquinas would point out, we are still obliged to obey him as Catholics unless he actually commands us to commit a sin.
I think the “rock star Pope” phenomenon began with St. John Paul II, though there were some signs of it (such as Pope Paul VI addressing the United Nations) even earlier. Once that particular genie was out of the bottle, there was no putting it back it.
Benedict XVI, a more traditionally minded Pope, was clearly uncomfortable with this phenomenon: in his last book, I recall him saying that one of the reasons he abdicated was because he couldn’t take the “rock star lifestyle” (meaning the travel, glad-handing, etc.) any more, referring specifically to the upcoming World Youth Day.
As to his political views, I think (and I say this with utmost respect for the Pope) that they have been shaped by a rather provincial attitude, in which he sees most phenomena - even global ones - through the lens of Latin American politics and particularly the peculiar Argentine phenomenon known as Peronism, which cannot be easily classified as “right” or “left”. The Church and her Pontiffs have taken a variety of political positions over the years, and even successive Popes have had areas of disagreement (contrast Bl. Pius IX and Leo XIII, for example), and none of them is binding on the faithful unless they are authoritatively declared as such (for example, the 1949 decree of the Holy Office pronouncing automatic excommunication for officially belonging to the Communist Party).
Theologically, I think he personally finds the entire issue of doctrine rather tiresome and tends to delegate it to others (such as Kasper and Fernandez), who then, unfortunately, open the door to questionable ideas and practices. But, as St. Thomas Aquinas would point out, we are still obliged to obey him as Catholics unless he actually commands us to commit a sin.
