The Next Pope

[JReducation]

Genesis 6:3 And God said: My spirit shall not remain in man for ever, because he is flesh, and his days shall be a** hundred and twenty years.**

This would make him the longest serving pope in history. Great!

Do you know why the ancient Jews wrote 120 years? Look at the first two digits.

Faternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[JReducation]

Just an observation here, but I think it’s important to remember that the pope is elected not by the Holy Spirit but by men with free will (who may be guided by the Holy Spirit). I mean, think of the handful of bad popes the Church has had throughout the centuries–I wouldn’t pin those on God.

That being said, I love Pope Benedict so I don’t want to think about anyone else.

If they were true popes, even the bad ones were selected by the Holy Spirit. That is part of the Catholic faith. There is no guarrantee that the Holy Spirit is going to pick saints. That was not the promise made by Christ. The promise was that they would not lead the Church away from Christ by teaching error. They never have. Even the worst of the worst. If a pope teachers error, he is not a pope. Thus he has not been selected by the Spirit and the Chair of Peter is empty. As long as he is pope, then he is there by the power and Will of the Holy Spirit.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[Nowhere_Man]

You’re welcome. Once I remembered that we have had popes from other Churches, but could not recall their names, my “OCD” kicked in. I had to go look it up. Am I the only person who has those moments?

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

Definitely not; I do it all the time :sad_yes:

 

[JaredR]

If they were true popes, even the bad ones were selected by the Holy Spirit. That is part of the Catholic faith. There is no guarrantee that the Holy Spirit is going to pick saints. That was not the promise made by Christ. The promise was that they would not lead the Church away from Christ by teaching error. They never have. Even the worst of the worst. If a pope teachers error, he is not a pope. Thus he has not been selected by the Spirit and the Chair of Peter is empty. As long as he is pope, then he is there by the power and Will of the Holy Spirit.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

Hi JR, I have been taught the opposite. Is there a quote you could show me? I’d like some clarification on this since I am new to the faith.

Thanks.

 

[yoopersenior]

You’re welcome. Once I remembered that we have had popes from other Churches, but could not recall their names, my “OCD” kicked in. I had to go look it up. Am I the only person who has those moments?

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

Brother, that happens to me all the time. I spend too much time on the computer looking up something I just HAVE to know at that particular moment! For me, often it is something quite trivial, and I later wonder why that info was so important at the time.

Re: American Popes…wouldn’t Bishop Fulton J. Sheen have made a good one? I really hope he is canonized. I watched his television shows in black and white when I was a kid. And here I am finally going to become Catholic! I think he influenced many people. I like to watch the re-runs of Life is Worth Living on EWTN. It’s just like Mother Angelica’s re-runs have had a profound effect on me. I know that she is in fragile health and doesn’t make any new shows. But what she has done for the world through EWTN will someday make her a saint, too.

 

[JReducation]

Brother, that happens to me all the time. I spend too much time on the computer looking up something I just HAVE to know at that particular moment! For me, often it is something quite trivial, and I later wonder why that info was so important at the time.

Re: American Popes…wouldn’t Bishop Fulton J. Sheen have made a good one? I really hope he is canonized. I watched his television shows in black and white when I was a kid. And here I am finally going to become Catholic! I think he influenced many people. I like to watch the re-runs of Life is Worth Living on EWTN. It’s just like Mother Angelica’s re-runs have had a profound effect on me. I know that she is in fragile health and doesn’t make any new shows. But what she has done for the world through EWTN will someday make her a saint, too.

I love Archbishop Sheen’s work. My guess is that the Holy Spirit never selected him as pope, because he would not have been good for the Church.

As to Mother, I agree that she has made a great contribution to the Church. That being said, the study for canonization focuses on one question: “Did this person live a life of heroic Christian virtue?” Heroic does not mean standing up before a firing squad. Though that can be one form of it. Heroic can be putting up with daily life as Jesus would and for the love of Jesus. They don’t look at the person’s accomplishments. They really look at the person’s virtues. This is a good thing. Look at Fr. Marciel, the founder of the Legionaires of Christ. No one can deny his accomplishment. I don’t believe that Mother is in the same moral boat is Fr. Marciel was. That’s not what I’m saying. I’m just saying that they will look at her life of virtue. Based on the little that I know about her inner life, I believe that she’s a very holy woman.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[JReducation]

Hi JR, I have been taught the opposite. Is there a quote you could show me? I’d like some clarification on this since I am new to the faith.

Thanks.

I’d be happy to look that up for you and suggest some links or reading. I’m trying to think if it would be in canon law or theology of the priesthood and papacy. I’ll check both out and get back to you on that. I have to go through my seminary notes and some of my books.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[JaredR]

I’d be happy to look that up for you and suggest some links or reading. I’m trying to think if it would be in canon law or theology of the priesthood and papacy. I’ll check both out and get back to you on that. I have to go through my seminary notes and some of my books.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

I would be very grateful. Maybe you could PM me when you get the chance? I’m not sure if I will remember to check back here.

 

[JReducation]

I would be very grateful. Maybe you could PM me when you get the chance? I’m not sure if I will remember to check back here.

•“If any one shall say that it is not by the institution of Christ our Lord Himself or by divinely established right that Blessed Peter has perpetual successors in his primacy over the universal Church, or that the Roman Pontiff is not the successor of Blessed Peter in this same primacy. — let him be anathema” (Denzinger-Bannwart,

newadvent.org/cathen/12260a.htm

The article is very long, but it gives a wonderful summary of how the Church arrived at the conclusion that not only Peter, but also his successors are elected by Christ himself. It’s well written, but not reader friendly.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[KC91]

Personally I would prefer the next Pope to be of the Pius XII mould so that mass attendence would increase (80% worldwide under Pius XII!) along with the power, influence and prestige of the church. But I would support whoever comes out as the next Holy Father.

However this question is not likely to come up soon as people in Rome say that Benedict XVI is like Leo XIII in that he will live until his 90s as despite him being 82 is still very healthy and when John Paul II was 82 it already looked like he would not live much longer.

 

[KC91]

Re: American Pope - Francis Cardinal Spellman would have made a good one as he raised a lot of money for the church and increased it’s power and influence in the US, ushering in the so called ‘golden period’ of American Catholicism in the 1950s

 

[JReducation]

The papacy is not about power. It is about holiness. A pope is a father who pushes his children from behind. He pushes them to do as St. Catherine of Siena said, “To become the persons that they were meant to be so that they can light the world on fire.” Let us remember that our greatest sainst were the least prestigious people. Their prestige came after they were dead. During their lives, they were men and women who moved others by their teaching, example, love and prayerful lives. This is the vocation of a pope, to lead others to sanctity.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[KC91]

Yes but power and can be good and neccesary as well for the Papacy - with power it is easier to proclaim the gospel and prevent bad things such as communism and abortion which Pius XII was able to do with his strong influence in Catholic countries.

 

[JReducation]

Yes but power and can be good and neccesary as well for the Papacy - with power it is easier to proclaim the gospel and prevent bad things such as communism and abortion which Pius XII was able to do with his strong influence in Catholic countries.

I understand that power can be properly chaneled. But the point is that a pope is not elected to restore power, but to lead in holiness. If power comes, it is an added bonus. We can’t deny that Pope John Pau II had a lot of influence with many powerful leaders… There has never been a loss of political influence. There has been a difference in focus and in spheres of influence.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[KC91]

Yes JPII had influence but it was not as powerful an influence as several decades ago. After Vatican II (I accept the council but it cannot be denied that there were bad effects from it’s spirit) the Catholic community lost it’s unity, meaning that they would not vote as a bloc for whoever their Bishop or Cardinal told them to vote for meaning a loss of power for the Church as politicians no longer had to court the Church with policies sympathetic to the Church and it’s teachings. The ‘influence’ JPII had with powerful leaders was mainly superficial, all they wanted was their photo taken with a widely admired figure.

 

[Xandria]

I don’t even want to think about this question because I like Pope Benedict and want a looong and healthy life for him! Plus, I barely know anything about other cardinals. But, personally I think it would be cool to have Cardinal Dziwisz, the secretaty of Pope John Paul II, as pope. It’s the closest I can think of having Pope JPII back!

But like others said, I will follow every pope the Holy Spirit chooses.