The Pope is Resigning

So long, and thanks for all the lawsuits.

Pope Benedict XVI has announced that he is stepping down as Pope, a really amazing turn of events considering that a Pope hasn't stepped down in 600 years. It kind of makes me dizzy contemplating an institution that has that much of a history you can reference.

First off, good for Benedict to make this choice and hopefully set a president. Elderly, sick leaders, obvious puppets of their young aids, do no one any good, in the Church, Boardroom, Presidential Palace or Senate. The rest of Benedict's record is pretty bad. He has renewed the Church's commitments on social justice issues, but has doubled down on the social issues - no to birth control, female priests, and so on. Benedict was neck-deep in the child abuse scandal, a issue which in a better world than this would have completely destroyed the Church's moral authority for at least a generation.

The Conclave to elect a new Pope with kick off next month. A better world is possible. There are cardinals, including leading candidates that are reformers and will change the Church for the better. (Current candidates and odds are here) Of course, its not in the hands of the people, just the select few. Oh and God, I guess. For the political science of Pope selection, see here.

The Pope Backs Action on Climate Change

How about that.

Around election time, there always lots of static about Pro-Choice Catholic politicos. How about we see some pressure on Catholic politicos who are trying to block action on climate change.

Let's put that Catholic guild to good use, for a change

Things that Make You Go Hmmmmm

I don't mean to alarm anybody but in a poll on the most admired man by Americans, Glenn Beck is tied with THE POPE

Hillary and Barack remains comfortably at the top, but sill, boy, Americans, I just don't know.

The Pope is Here!

The Pope comes to America. I wonder how long he has to be Pope before he stops being "the new Pope"

Important Pope fact of the day:

The official callsign of the aircraft carrying Pope Benedict is "Shepherd 1."

The New Pope

So despite a little snag trying to read the smoke signals this morning, we now have a new Pope. Joseph Ratzinger is now Pope Benedict XVI. He's pretty much the opposite of what I wanted in a new Pope:

Ratzinger, who turned 78 on Saturday, he has been head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith since 1981. In that position, he maintained strict discipline on church doctrine, including disciplining church officials who differed on church policy.

He has been the driving force behind the Vatican's crackdowns on liberation theology, religious pluralism, challenges to traditional moral teachings on issues such as homosexuality, and dissent on such issues as women's ordination.

E. J. Dionne (Who pretty much defines liberal Catholic thought for me) has some of the best stuff I've read today:

Ratzinger now carries on his battle without the charismatic support of his friend. He is proposing that the church take one aspect of John Paul's synthesis -- the battle against relativism reflected in doctrinal rigor -- and make it the late pope's central legacy. The cardinals who marched solemnly into the Sistine Chapel yesterday afternoon will be deciding if that is the right fight for the future.

The Cardinals made their choice. No movement on any doctrine seems to be what they wanted. No women Priests, no pluralism, no movement on contraception, no movement on anything. Nobody pays attention to me. Well the man is 78 years old, so we might have to do this all over again soon.

Pick a Pack of Popes

Picking the new Pope is game on today. I was briefly considering laying a bet on my favorite Godfried Daneels who at 40-1 is a pretty long shot. Francis Arinze of Nigeria is the favorite at 3-1, while some of the more obscure Cardinals are at 125-1. I was fairly certain that betting on this process would send me straight to hell however, so I will restrain myself to speculation on the outcome.

My Guy For Pope

Sure it's completely secret and holy and everything, but picking the next Pope is a political act. I just have to pick sides somehow. TNR has a good round-up of the Papable and the case for each here. I found my guy: Godfried Danneels, Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels:

The 72-year-old cardinal is the former head of International Pax Christi, the Catholic peace movement, and has been unusually outspoken for a man who aspires to his church's highest position. In the past few years, Danneels has urged his colleagues to debate controversial questions such as whether an ailing pope should be encouraged, or even forced, to resign; whether women should be allowed to fill top Vatican posts; and whether condoms are an appropriate tool in the fight against AIDS.

Of course, not being a Cardinal, I don't have a lot to say in the matter.

It's Good to Be the Swing

Catholics are now swing voters in this country. That means that, as a group, they could vote for either party in any given election. Unlike religious conservatives (R) or African-Americans(D) they don't have strong ties to either party. Which of course leads to a lot of ass-kissing. For example, from Political Animal we learn that Bush has ordered flags lowered to half staff, which is not something normally done. Bush and Conservatives are doing all they can to use the Pope's death to snuggle up to Catholics in this country. Just look at FoxNews these days. Of course, they didn't like the Pope when he opposed Bush's Iraq War, but remember the GOP has no sense of irony.

Papabile

The Italian word for possible papal candidates. The guessing game on who will be the next Pope is on in earnest. Here's what I want in a Pope, not that anyone is asking. I would want someone who would continue John Paul II outreach to other religions and international travel while easing up on the social issues, particularly women in the clergy and contraception. I don't get worked up over the Church being Pro-Life mainly because the Pope can't outlaw abortion and I have no problem with the Pope using moral persuading to reduce the number of abortions. But for the Catholic Church to make a sin of contraception in the age of AIDS and a growing church in the 3rd World is criminal. Female Priests is a fairly "duh" move for woman's equality and could go a long way to addressing the shortage of Priests that the Church faces. If any of the Cardinals call me up and ask my opinion, that's what I'll tell them. I'll be waiting by my phone.

Pope John Paul II Dies

The Pope has died. I'm 27 years old and while by no measure can I be currently considered a good Catholic, I received a full Catholic upbringing including a multi-year stint as a alter boy. I've never known a Pope other than John Paul II. The debate on his historic legacy is well under way, but one of the priestly commentators on the TV said that he will one day be called John Paul the Great and my guess is he is right. There is a lot to chew over. Now this is a political blog so we are going to pay attention to the upcoming Papal Election. Here's some early handicapping from Slate. The main issues will be where the new Pope comes from and theologically stands. All of this comes with a word of caution:

Though it's tempting (and fun) to view the papal selection like the Iowa caucuses - all about voting blocks, spin, and positioning - this is still, on some level, a highly personal and spiritual decision. There may be a cardinal who is all wrong for the political reasons listed above but who's viewed by his peers as a truly holy individual. Many people believe the Holy Spirit will be guiding the cardinals' deliberations, and God may have his own views on this, Paddypower.com notwithstanding.

Conversion

Something from NewDonkey to make you go hmmmmmm:

The National Association of Evangelicals, with 50,000 church affiliates representing 30 million or so people, is meeting next week in Washington, where it will consider a manifesto on "civic responsibility" that might cause Karl Rove some heartburn.

To be sure, the manifesto reiterates familiar Christian conservative positions on abortion, gay marriage, and so forth, but also has surprisingly bold sections on economic justice, environmental stewardship, and even war and peace.

Regular church-going does not make you a conservative. It's not an automatic thing. Jesus helped the poor and the sick and a lot of people get that message in church. You can go to church every week and never even think about voting for Bush for a single moment. Take my parents. Please.