What has Pp Benedict done so far?

[Dempsey1919]

Pope Benedict XVI and his curia really are doing an excellent job. The crisis that has plagued the Church since the close of the Second Vatican Council finally appears to be ending.

The Motu Proprio is his great gift to the Church. He has allowed us the use of the Mass that sustained many thousands of saints throughout the centuries past. This can only be deemed as a good thing. It has the potential to bring many traditional minded Catholics back into the mainstream fold. Not only that, but I think this will be one of the things used to bring the SSPX back into full communion with Rome.

To me, it seems like Pope Benedict is the first post-concillar pope who is actually trying to implement the true reforms of Vatican II; and in the process, he is doing his best to rid the Church of the bad things that were done in the “spirit of Vatican II.”

During the papal election, I was hoping that Ratzinger would be chosen to guide the Church and I was extremely happy when he was. I knew that he would be a great pope, and it seems that my instincts were correct.

While I don’t like using this terminology, it seems that the right-wing of the Church is finally gaining power. I definitely think this is a good thing. I have heard that the younger Priests are all orthodox and faithful, wereas the liberal element in the Church are all greying. In another 20 years, I think that this liberal element will all but be decimated and we will once again have faithful Priests in the majority.

Aside from the Motu Proprio, what are the other great things that Pope Benedict has done? How do you think his papacy will shape the Church in the years to come?

 

[Mickey_Jackson]

Two great encyclicals on the virtues of Charity and Hope, to start…

Not to mention a re-affirmation of the fact that the Catholic Church is the one true Church founded by Christ (thereby reminding us of what V2 REALLY taught).

More generally, I am a huge fan of Pope Benedict’s pastoral style, and I do not think the Holy Spirit could have chosen anyone to better fill the shoes of John Paul the Great. Whereas his predecessor was most at home saying Mass in a sports stadium for 100,000 people, our current Pope is quietly and gently re-introducing the Truths of our Faith that have been forgotten or under-emphasized. As the saying goes, John Paul opened our hearts to the Church, and now Benedict is filling them.

Ours is a sinful age, but where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more, and the Popes of the 20th century are living proof of St. Paul’s maxim. Benedict XVI is the is the latest in a long line of truly great Popes of the 20th century. Pius XII, John XXIII, and both John Pauls should be canonized; wouldn’t it be great if one day they, along with Benedict XVI, were all raised to the glory of the altars together?

 

[knightbvm]

Two great encyclicals on the virtues of Charity and Hope, to start…

Not to mention a re-affirmation of the fact that the Catholic Church is the one true Church founded by Christ (thereby reminding us of what V2 REALLY taught).

More generally, I am a huge fan of Pope Benedict’s pastoral style, and I do not think the Holy Spirit could have chosen anyone to better fill the shoes of John Paul the Great. Whereas his predecessor was most at home saying Mass in a sports stadium for 100,000 people, our current Pope is quietly and gently re-introducing the Truths of our Faith that have been forgotten or under-emphasized. As the saying goes, John Paul opened our hearts to the Church, and now Benedict is filling them.

Ours is a sinful age, but where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more, and the Popes of the 20th century are living proof of St. Paul’s maxim. Benedict XVI is the is the latest in a long line of truly great Popes of the 20th century. Pius XII, John XXIII, and both John Pauls should be canonized; wouldn’t it be great if one day they, along with Benedict XVI, were all raised to the glory of the altars together?

I really do think our Holy father is a breath of fresh air–I hope more litugical reform is set to happen especially more latin and no more communion in the hand—seems like we are moving forward–hopefully he will also appoint more Bishops who are solid and traditional–I loved John Paul II, but I do not think he was a great Pope–his tolerance of liberal Bishops and his example at the Assisi prayer conference was just terrible. I hope God had mercy on his soul for that-----he would not be the example I would look for in a saint–I do prayer for the repose of his soul and had great love and respect for him, but I was deeply saddened by alot of the things he did as Pope–God Bless him!!!

 

[Mickey_Jackson]

I really do think our Holy father is a breath of fresh air–I hope more litugical reform is set to happen especially more latin and no more communion in the hand—seems like we are moving forward–hopefully he will also appoint more Bishops who are solid and traditional–I loved John Paul II, but I do not think he was a great Pope–his tolerance of liberal Bishops and his example at the Assisi prayer conference was just terrible. I hope God had mercy on his soul for that-----he would not be the example I would look for in a saint–I do prayer for the repose of his soul and had great love and respect for him, but I was deeply saddened by alot of the things he did as Pope–God Bless him!!!

Actually, if you read this article, you’ll understand that a lot of what radical Traditionalists say about the Assisi gatherings is patently false.

As for the liberal bishops, I tend to agree, but as Michelle Arnold writes here, John Paul II freely acknowledged that he should have been more of a disciplinarian. I think Arnold is right when she says that the mark of a good Pope is his willingness to admit his mistakes.

 

[knightbvm]

Actually, if you read this article, you’ll understand that a lot of what radical Traditionalists say about the Assisi gatherings is patently false.

As for the liberal bishops, I tend to agree, but as Michelle Arnold writes here, John Paul II freely acknowledged that he should have been more of a disciplinarian. I think Arnold is right when she says that the mark of a good Pope is his willingness to admit his mistakes.

LOL THAT IS A JOKE!!! Being a great Pope is what Pius X did–he say problems and kicked butt!!! Michelle Arnold is a joke if she said that—what great Pope got canonized “for being willing to admit mistakes”"----as for the rad trads fabricatiNG Assissi I have no doubt some did–I just really believe that the example of praying with all those religions, some who were voodohoo worshipers, was just a terrible example–especially today where religious tolerance (of truth) is rampant-

 

[Tim_c]

LOL THAT IS A JOKE!!! Being a great Pope is what Pius X did–he say problems and kicked butt!!! Michelle Arnold is a joke if she said that—what great Pope got canonized “for being willing to admit mistakes”"----as for the rad trads fabricatiNG Assissi I have no doubt some did–I just really believe that the example of praying with all those religions, some who were voodohoo worshipers, was just a terrible example–especially today where religious tolerance (of truth) is rampant-

In case you didn’t know Michelle Arnold is a very intelligent apologist on these forums.

As for the Holy Father. I love him and the work he has done. We should all pray for the Holy Father.

 

[knightbvm]

In case you didn’t know Michelle Arnold is a very intelligent apologist on these forums.

As for the Holy Father. I love him and the work he has done. We should all pray for the Holy Father.

Im sure she is and I meant no disrespect, but if she made that statment I totally disagree.----You want to see a great Pope read Pius X’s life–he was great–I pray that he is praying for our current Holy father–may Pope Benedict XVI imitate Pope Saint Pius X—

 

[Dempsey1919]

Without being disrespectful, I think that Benedict XVI is a better Pope than John Paul II for the simple reason that our current Pope seems unashamedly Catholic - he is not afraid to reaffirm traditional Catholic doctrine in a world that is hostile towards the faith. The fact that he has freed the Tridentine Mass is also a great thing; I like the fact that he wants to promote continuity.

While John Paul II was great, there were many things about his papacy that bothered me. His handling of the sexual abuse scandal was terrible; he should have adopted a more hard line approach.

He could have done more to care for the traditional Catholics within the Church; yes, he gave us the indult, but why couldn’t he have issued the MP in the same way that Benedict has?

However, we must also remember that John Paul II lead the Church through very turbulent times and I think that he did a great job in reaffirming the prohibition of artificial contraception and preventing women to join the priesthood.

 

[Mickey_Jackson]

LOL THAT IS A JOKE!!! Being a great Pope is what Pius X did–he say problems and kicked butt!!! Michelle Arnold is a joke if she said that—what great Pope got canonized “for being willing to admit mistakes”"----as for the rad trads fabricatiNG Assissi I have no doubt some did–I just really believe that the example of praying with all those religions, some who were voodohoo worshipers, was just a terrible example–especially today where religious tolerance (of truth) is rampant-

Perhaps if you had read the article I provided, you would know that St. Pius X was criticized for supposedly not taking a hard-enough line with Modernist bishops. People wanted him to just go on one big excommunication spree, but his prudence prevented him from doing so. Next time, inform yourself before you smear the Holy Father.

As for Popes admitting their mistakes, it’s a simple matter of humility. Popes are human, and they sin just as much as we do. In his last will and testament, Pius XII apologized profusely for what he saw as his failings and sins; was he a bad Pope? (Actually, he might have been too ecumenical for you). I’m sure St. Pius X did as well, because if he hadn’t he wouldn’t have been a Saint. If a Pope does not admit his mistakes, then he is without a doubt a bad Pope.

 

[Mickey_Jackson]

In addition, had you read the article I provided, you would see that John Paul II did not pray with the pagans; he encouraged them to pray according to the dictates of their consciences which, if you read the article, you will see is perfectly in line with Catholic Tradition and the teachings of St. Thomas Aquinas.

 

[knightbvm]

Perhaps if you had read the article I provided, you would know that St. Pius X was criticized for supposedly not taking a hard-enough line with Modernist bishops. People wanted him to just go on one big excommunication spree, but his prudence prevented him from doing so. Next time, inform yourself before you smear the Holy Father.

As for Popes admitting their mistakes, it’s a simple matter of humility. Popes are human, and they sin just as much as we do. In his last will and testament, Pius XII apologized profusely for what he saw as his failings and sins; was he a bad Pope? (Actually, he might have been too ecumenical for you). I’m sure St. Pius X did as well, because if he hadn’t he wouldn’t have been a Saint. If a Pope does not admit his mistakes, then he is without a doubt a bad Pope.

I didnt smear the Holy Father (JPII) I merely stated I didnt think he was great at all–I mean he let Bishops let Rembert Weakland (Wisconsin) run wild. Not to mention the Bishop in France who was a complete nut that he finally removed after a number of years—I could go on and on–His statements about other religions are, in my opinion horrrible and give great ammunition to enemies of the Church. Are the statements heresy? No, but they are ambiguous. In this day and age I think being ambiguous about salvation is a HUGE MISTAKE–it gives fuel for the hersey of religious indifferentism–again this is just my opinion–you may think he was great–I DONT!!! Now if you want examples of things I think are badly worded I can do that!!!
Also I am sure there were critics of Pius X, but if you read his life story you will see, in my opinion, that he totally dealt with modernism with prudence and with discipline. John Paul II was amazingly lacking in this regard–How about all the pro-choice politicians (publicly) that recieve communion. Why didnt the Pope come out and say NO? It is obvious that that these people dont give a hoot about the Church’s teaching, and not to mention the fact that they support a woman’s right to kill her own baby. Yet John Paul II never commnaded the Bishops to s top it. why?
He is the Pope he shouldnt ask nicely when it comes to these things he should COMMAND IT!!!–I COULD GO ON AND ON–

 

[Princess18]

The Motu Proprio is his great gift to the Church. He has allowed us the use of the Mass that sustained many thousands of saints throughout the centuries past. This can only be deemed as a good thing. It has the potential to bring many traditional minded Catholics back into the mainstream fold. Not only that, but I think this will be one of the things used to bring the SSPX back into full communion with Rome.

To me, it seems like Pope Benedict is the first post-concillar pope who is actually trying to implement the true reforms of Vatican II; and in the process, he is doing his best to rid the Church of the bad things that were done in the “spirit of Vatican II.”

I looked up “Moto Proprio” and read that it’s changes the Pope can make without the approval of other cardinals and bishops. I also read Pope Benedict’s letter to bishops on Tridentine Mass and I’m afraid I still don’t understand. Would you mind explaining this a little further as to what changes exactly he made?

 

[James0235]

I looked up “Moto Proprio” and read that it’s changes the Pope can make without the approval of other cardinals and bishops. I also read Pope Benedict’s letter to bishops on Tridentine Mass and I’m afraid I still don’t understand. Would you mind explaining this a little further as to what changes exactly he made?

In 1984 Pope John Paul II, through the Congregation for Divine Worship in a letter entiltled Quattuor Abhinc Annos, permitted bishops to allow their priests to offer the Tridentine Mass under very restrictive circumstances.

In 1988 he issued a Motu Proprio entitled Ecclesia Dei in which he removed some of these restrictions and encouraged all of the bishops to allow priests to offer the Tridentine Mass.

In 2007, in his own Motu Proprio entitled Summorum Pontificum, Pope Benedict made it clear that the Tridentine Mass was never legally restricted. And that any priest has the right to offer it. He does not need the permission of his bishop and his bishop cannot forbid him from offering it.

That’s a pretty simplified version. But, if you have read Summorum Pontificum (and the accompanying letter to bishops) then that will tell you what changes he made.

James

 

[Princess18]

In 2007, in his own Motu Proprio entitled Summorum Pontificum, Pope Benedict made it clear that the Tridentine Mass was never legally restricted. And that any priest has the right to offer it. He does not need the permission of his bishop and his bishop cannot forbid him from offering it.

Ok, so basically he’s pointing out that the priests have (and always have had) the right to offer the traditional Latin Mass?

(sorry. sometimes it really needs to be dumbed-down before some of us get it).

 

[James0235]

Ok, so basically he’s pointing out that the priests have (and always have had) the right to offer the traditional Latin Mass?

(sorry. sometimes it really needs to be dumbed-down before some of us get it).

Yep. You’ve got it.

I’ve learned that when it comes to Catholicism nearly everyone needs to have something dumbed-down before they understand it. There is just too much to our faith for anyone to know it all.

James