Pope Francis Dead

[Biff]

You can imagine the response a simple note on the Popes passing elicited on the "Don't need no foreign pope tellin' us Muricans how to talk to God 'cause He's Murican too" CPS facebook page. Those people are nuts.

I understand the next Pope will be a woman of color.

Mrs. Zed?

wrong color

Surely she could 'identify' as [whatever]?

[Del]

I wonder who is next in line and where he is from, and how long it will take for the choice to be made.

One (who's not taken the pulse of the Catholic church) wonders if the church, like the US and a few European countries, will swing back towards conservatism after it's experiment with a 'progressive' leader. Or, since that door was opened by Francis, it will continue in that direction.

The centuries-old wisdom of Rome says that "We should always follow a fat pope with a thin one."

In other words, the pendulum has always turned toward the middle, and thus the Catholic Church has remained essentially the same throughout the long centuries.
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John XXIII and Paul VI were regarded as "liberal" popes, ushering in Vatican II and sweeping reforms to the Liturgy.

John Paul the Great and Benedict XVI were regarded as "conservative" popes, dedicated to the authentic implementation of Vatican II while restraining some of the wilder urges to monster-mash the Liturgy and to usher in worldly sexual values and sins.

Francis was a liberal, with enthusiasms toward modern Liturgy and liturgical abuses, and modern sexual license.

We'll see what happens with the next popes (if we live long enough).

[Del]

The funeral is tomorrow. Then there will be a novena (nine days of prayer. Then the Conclave will seal up in the Sistine Chapel and select a new pope.

The secular media will speculate about "political factions" and guess at who will most likely be chosen. They can't help themselves, actually.

Romans have an expression for everything. In this case, "He who enters the Conclave as a Pope, leaves the Conclave as a Cardinal." The guessers never guess it right. It's almost like the Holy Spirit has more to say than the political machinations of men.
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I remember in 1979, when Paul VI died. TIME Magazine had a half-dozen papabile as their cover story, all well-profiled in the lengthy article inside.

The guy who became Pope John Paul I was not among them.

When JP1 died just over a month later, TIME Magazine hedged their position. They had some 30 cardinals on the cover, with postage stamp-sized photos and little blurbs on each on inside.

You guessed it: the Polish Karol Cardinal Wojtyla was not among the list.

American journalists have gotten a lot dumber since 1979.

[Hugo Drax]

Pizzaballa 2025.

You heard it here first.

[Del]

Pizzaballa 2025.

You heard it here first.

Apparently, Wikipedia agrees with you....

Pierbattista Pizzaballa

Pierbattista Pizzaballa OFM (Italian pronunciation: [ˌpjɛrbatˈtista pittsaˈballa]; born 21 April 1965) is an Italian Catholic prelate who has served as Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem since 6 November 2020.[1] A Franciscan friar, he served as Custos of the Holy Land from 2004 to 2016 and as Apostolic Administrator of the Latin Patriarchate from 2016 to 2020. He was made a cardinal by Pope Francis in 2023. He is considered a possible front-runner for the papacy at the 2025 papal conclave following the death of Pope Francis.[2][3]
....
Positions

Cardinal Pizzaballa is opposed to the blessing of same-sex couples and the readmission of divorcees to the sacraments. However, he has stated that he desires a pontificate in continuity with that of Pope Francis, openness to immigrants and a greater role for women in the Church.[23]

We should always follow a Jesuit with a Franciscan.

Then never choose another Jesuit.

[coco]

Pizzaballa 2025.

You heard it here first.

Apparently, Wikipedia agrees with you....

Pierbattista Pizzaballa

Pierbattista Pizzaballa OFM (Italian pronunciation: [ˌpjɛrbatˈtista pittsaˈballa]; born 21 April 1965) is an Italian Catholic prelate who has served as Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem since 6 November 2020.[1] A Franciscan friar, he served as Custos of the Holy Land from 2004 to 2016 and as Apostolic Administrator of the Latin Patriarchate from 2016 to 2020. He was made a cardinal by Pope Francis in 2023. He is considered a possible front-runner for the papacy at the 2025 papal conclave following the death of Pope Francis.[2][3]
....
Positions

Cardinal Pizzaballa is opposed to the blessing of same-sex couples and the readmission of divorcees to the sacraments. However, he has stated that he desires a pontificate in continuity with that of Pope Francis, openness to immigrants and a greater role for women in the Church.[23]

We should always follow a Jesuit with a Franciscan.

Then never choose another Jesuit.

Cardinal Pizzaballa is opposed to the blessing of same-sex couples and the readmission of divorcees to the sacraments. However, he has stated that he desires a pontificate in continuity with that of Pope Francis, openness to immigrants and a greater role for women in the Church. {/quote]