Papal War? What Papal War?

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there are more than a few Catholic blogs or other publications which perpetuate the same myth (* cough * * cough * LifeSiteNews * cough * * cough *). In reality, I’ve seen no evidence to support the claim that Benedict is anything other than 100% behind Francis. Sure they’re two very different Popes with very different styles, but Benedict being who he is, it’d be simply unimaginable for him to not be totally supportive of Francis,
 
The article itself, or the people it describes?
 
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It seems to me that even though he resigned the papacy, Pope Emeritus Benedict still wishes to remain relevant and have his voice be heard. An example of this is the letter he recently released marking the 100th anniversary of the birth of Pope St. John Paul II.


It seems that he cannot help but to offer his opinion when in that letter he writes, concerning Vatican II, “The deliberations of the Council had been presented to the public as a dispute over the Faith itself, which seemed to deprive the Council of its infallible and unwavering sureness… This feeling that nothing was no longer certain, that everything was questioned, was kindled even more by the method of implementation of liturgical reform.”

It is, of course, his right to say to the world whatever he wants, but I think that the excerpt I posted from the paragraph above will be used by those Catholics who dislike what they see as the mistakes and missteps resulting from Vatican II, or perhaps the entire Council in general, and to show that they still have a co-sympathizer in Benedict, and possibly, in their minds at least, an opponent to the style and direction of Pope Francis, whose job now, as the current leader of the Church, is to continue putting the Council into effect in the way which he considers to be most appropriate.
 
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christofirst said:
will be used by those Catholics who dislike what they see as the mistakes and missteps resulting from Vatican II,
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“Used by” is a rather unkind phrase. I would say simply that those Catholics agree with him.

As a traditionalist myself, I highly appreciate Francis’ attitude towards the SSPX which is far more generous than his two predecessors.
 
I meant no unkindness. It’s just that many of us, myself included, look for phrases or nuggets from the writings of one or another Church leader and appropriate them if they seem to agree with our point of view.
 
I’ve seen this recently in some news article by far left factions, women’s ordination etc they seem to think that if that bully BXVI would just get out of the way then same sex marriages, women priests, birth control, etc would just be a green light. Let’s say for the sake of argument that Francis is “left leaning” in his politics and theology. There is A LOT more than a 93 year old German standing in his way. You can’t “lurch to the left or right” fast in the Church. You will lose the Church.
 
By the way, I don’t think Francis is left-leaning in the way the bourgeois left understands it. Yes, he is concerned for the poor, but so is everyone else, each in their different ways. He also likes a particular style which looks informal but lacks the principle ingredient of informality, namely choice. On sexual mores he is more conservative and forceful than his recent predecessors. He hates abortion and gay marriage. He doesn’t like traditional liturgy but he is very generous to the SSPX.
 
It doesn’t have to be bad to recognize that this pope or that pope were “left or right” conservative or liberal. It just is. Pope Francis politically is what Americans would deem leftist. And I think theologically too. He is Jesuit trained and I do disagree with you about being conservative in sexual morals. I think there have been several sexual issues on his watch and while he has been Catholic, he also has been controversial on subjects such as birth control same sex issues, and of all things maybe best known for a conversation in the Church about what constitutes adultery. Much if this comes from his “off the cuff” reputation and his penchant for airplane interviews. I actually think he and Trump have very little in common politically but are incredibly similar in communication and governance. Trump has twitter and Francis has airplanes. Both of them are seeming populists.
 
Mrchatsworth said:
I actually think he and Trump have very little in common politically but are incredibly similar in communication and governance. Trump has twitter and Francis has airplanes. Both of them are seeming populists.
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I posted something like this in a thread awhile back and a lot of people didn’t like it - but I’m glad I’m not the only one who notices this. While Trump and Pope Francis have little in common concerning their political views, they are actually very similar stylistically with how they communicate and govern. They both were elected for similar reasons too - to shake the systems that they govern. I think Trump and Pope Francis have more in common with each other than many people are willing to admit.
 
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