Pope Benedict Resigns

First Pope to resign since the 1400's. I think the job has changed in the last 50 years. No more just ruling from Rome. Pope John Paul set up the precedent of going on tour to visit the faithful. For the next choice I hope they go for someone in their 50's with charisma.

The Pope's kinda like the Queen - increasingly irrelevant, yet still expensive.

'Course, I'm not catholic, so that probably tints my view a bit.

I grew up Catholic but no longer participate but the Pope is one of the few world religious leaders. And does still have influence, even if it has lessened.

Benedict has loaded up the College of Cardinals with conservatives so I think most likely another hardliner will be chosen.

I am hoping for Stephen Colbert.

I am not Catholic either but do understand the significance of the Pope to the Catholic faith.
I find it distasteful to see some make jokes.
There is no respect for anyone or anything in this country anymore.
Folks scream to be treated with respect as they make fun or or disrespect others and their beliefs systems.
You might not agree with it but for goodness sake, man up and make an attempt at respectful conversation.
Geeeeeez

frogger wrote: I am not Catholic either but do understand the significance of the Pope to the Catholic faith.
I find it distasteful to see some make jokes.
There is no respect for anyone or anything in this country anymore.
Folks scream to be treated with respect as they make fun or or disrespect others and their beliefs systems.
You might not agree with it but for goodness sake, man up and make an attempt at respectful conversation.
Geeeeeez

Is that really so different than making jokes, distasteful ones at that, about the President of the United States?

Poor Ratzinger, it was very hard to follow the charismatic Pope John Paul II. But maybe one more reason that the man is retiring, was seeing firsthand how JPII's last years went with the Parkinson's and dementia.

frogger wrote: I am not Catholic either but do understand the significance of the Pope to the Catholic faith.
I find it distasteful to see some make jokes.
There is no respect for anyone or anything in this country anymore.
Folks scream to be treated with respect as they make fun or or disrespect others and their beliefs systems.
You might not agree with it but for goodness sake, man up and make an attempt at respectful conversation.
Geeeeeez

Geeeeeee, quite the outrage. I do not have to respect the Pope or the institution that he heads, particularly since he governed over the cover up of the widespread sexual abuse by his employees of young children.

And for once I agree with Dog. I still respect a lot of what the Church has done through the centuries but the coverup of the abuse and the moving of the perps was wrong, very wrong. If they would have called the police on the abusers quickly and also booted out them, they wouldn't be looking at all these lawsuits today.

This is not a "joke":

Mission To Revive Faith Clouded By Scandal
[H]is papacy will be forever intertwined with the sex abuse scandal.

Over the course of just a few months in 2010, thousands of people in Europe, Australia, South America and beyond came forward with reports of priests who raped and molested them as children, and bishops who covered up the crimes.

Documents revealed that the Vatican knew well of the problem yet turned a blind eye for decades, at times rebuffing bishops who tried to do the right thing. Benedict had firsthand knowledge of the scope of the problem since his old office, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith which he had headed since 1982, was responsible for dealing with abuse cases.

But Benedict never admitted any personal or Vatican failure. Much to the dismay of victims, he never took action against bishops who ignored or covered up the abuse of their priests or moved known pedophiles to new posts where they abused again. And hard as he tried to heal the church's wounds, Benedict's message was always clouded by his wooden personal style.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/1 ... 61590.html

I do not have to have respect for someone, or an organization, that not only allowed it to happen, but was a willing participant in the cover-up...And even when confronted with it, refused to admit any failure. Respect is earned--not demanded. And this isn't it.