This is a good question. That would be a difficult job to have at any age, but a very difficult one at being that old.
So who will be his successor? Will they have a papal election? Will all the cardinals get together and vote?
Generally speaking, present Pope excluded, a Pope is Pope until he dies. If the Cardinals selected a Pope too young he might be in the position for 30, 40, 50 years. I think that is why you would generally see them select older Cardinals to lead the Church.
In reality, the Cardinals do not elect the next Pope - the Holy Spirit guides the Cardinals in selecting the person whom He has chosen. It's (nearly) unheard of for a Pope to resign because he has been selected by God to lead the Church. Resigning would be like quitting a God-ordained mission.
Although I'm Catholic, I believe the spirit of the devil has been in the Vatican ever since Vatican II. I'm watching this very closely.
Although I'm Catholic, I believe the spirit of the devil has been in the Vatican ever since Vatican II. I'm watching this very closely.
I posted this as a historically significant event, and am very disappointed with the Catholic bashing. Thanks, mods, for deleting that, and I won't be offended if you lock this up.
I am not a Catholic, nor am I religious in a conventional sense, but a little respect for the feelings and views of others is in order here.
The first Catholic I told about this said "I wonder what the real story is." Not sure what she meant.
I am not a Catholic, nor am I religious in a conventional sense, but a little respect for the feelings and views of others is in order here.
The first Catholic I told about this said "I wonder what the real story is." Not sure what she meant.
Can you guys PLEASE not be bashing one's faith. According to the fairly recent poll, 10% of us OSAers are Catholic. Can you guys please set aside your problems with the church, whatever they are, and contribute to the conversation responsibly and courteously?
Former Catholic here. I have my differences with Mother Church, but nothing that a glass of wine between friends won't gloss over. :-). That said, I was shocked at the news. The pope is Christ's Vicar on Earth (according to doctrine) and you just don't resign from something like that! I too suspect there may be more than just health, but I don't think it's anything sinister. I'd believe that it could be administrative dissatisfaction. Face it - John Paul II was a tough act to follow.
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