NEWS ANALYSIS
By William C. Symonds / BusinessWeek Online
There's an old saying in the Catholic Church that a fat Pope is followed by a thin Pope. To put it another way: The conclave of cardinals that elects the next Pope is typically influenced by a pendulum effect, in which the group seeks a successor who will undo some of the excesses of his predecessor.
This time, however, the pendulum seems to have gotten stuck. Though Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger has chosen the name Benedict XVI, "there will be so little change [in many areas] that he will, in effect, be John Paul III," predicts Philip Jenkins, professor of history at Penn State and an expert on global Christianity. Indeed, as head of the powerful Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith since 1981, Ratzinger was long the Vatican's second most powerful official, and the man who provided the intellectual defense for John Paul II's brand of conservative Catholicism.
Ratzinger's election comes as a great disappointment to many American Catholics, who were hoping for a more progressive reformer who would aggressively tackle the many problems facing the church, from a growing shortage of priests to mounting financial strains and a governance crisis in which power has been centralized in the Vatican.
GLOBAL ISSUES. "He will be a polarizing [Pope]," worries Dean Hoge, a sociologist who studies the Church at the Catholic University of America. While conservatives will applaud the selection of a doctrinal hardliner, Hoge predicts reformers will also be emboldened in their opposition. As a result, "It will be much harder to find common ground, and that may weaken the Church," he says.
There's also skepticism that the new Benedict XVI will be able to solve some of the church's most pressing global problems. Take Western Europe, where Catholicism has been marginalized as a social and political force. As the former Archbishop of Munich, the German Ratzinger certainly understands the problem. But his "style has been to condemn secularization and globalization," says Thomas Groome, a theology professor at Boston College. "That will hardly be effective."
Jenkins worries that Ratzinger may take a harder line towards Islam than his predecessor. And in Latin America, the new Pope will likely draw mixed reactions, figures Father Pedro Benitez Mestre, 32, who teaches theology at Panamerican University, which is supported by the conservative lay Catholic Opus Dei movement.
BRIDGE-BUILDING NAMESAKE. In Mexico, where Opus Dei is especially strong, Ratzinger's vehement attacks on religious relativism should play well. But those more concerned with social issues will be disappointed. "There will be a feeling that the cardinals took a step backwards," predicts Benitez, who fears the new Pope will do little about the region's crushing poverty, or international debt relief for poor countries.
Still, Benedict XVI could surprise the many skeptics. Now that he has finally become Pope at age 78, he could use his authority to push for solutions to some of the Church's most pressing issues. "If he tackled them, he could do so with great credibility because he has such conservative credentials," argues Groome. He draws an analogy to cold war hardliner Richard Nixon being able to open the door to China as President, precisely because no one could accuse him of being soft on communism.
And in Germany, Ratzinger's decision to choose the papal name Benedict XVI is being hailed as conciliatory move. Their hope is that he will follow in the footsteps of Benedict XV, who became Pope in 1914 and worked to build bridges in a bitterly divided church.
A WOMAN'S PLACE. But for now, many experts worry that if Ratzinger hews to his established line, long-standing problems could worsen. Take the shortage of priests. In the U.S., the average parish priest is around 60, and must look after 1,500 parishioners, up from 650 in 1950. And in Latin America, where the church is losing market share to evangelical Protestants, the shortage is so acute that "the local Protestant pastor can respond in one hour if there's a crisis, but it might take the Catholic priest two weeks," says Jenkins.
Reformers argue the solution is to open up the priesthood to married men and women. But a letter to bishops issued by Ratzinger's office last year argued that the priesthood should be "reserved...solely to men," and that "women are called to be unique examples and witnesses for all Christians of how the Bride is to respond in love to the love of the Bridegroom."
Hoge flatly predicts, "He won't allow priests to marry." Instead, "he'll be a lot more aggressive about inviting young men to join the priesthood," says Frank Butler, director of the Foundations & Donors Interested in Catholic Activities, which represents major U.S. Catholic foundations. But few believe that will be very effective.
THE INSIDER. Nor does Ratzinger's long career as a top official of the Vatican Curia suggest Benedict XVI will be predisposed to decentralize decisionmaking, by giving more authority to bishops and lay leaders. Instead, "I think he will continue Pope John Paul II's pattern of centering decisionmaking in Rome," says Charles Zech, an expert on church finances who teaches at Villanova University. "He was the Pope's right-hand man, and an insider, so you probably won't see a big increase in collegiality."
Such a stance would frustrate many American Catholics, who have been pressing for an increased voice for the faithful in the wake of the priest sex-abuse scandal. Ratzinger's deep knowledge of the inner workings of the Vatican could help him shore up its finances, which have recently slipped into the red. But few experts believe he will be able to do much about the church's deepening financial woes in the U.S. Because of lawsuits filed since the sex-abuse scandal broke, three U.S. dioceses are already in Chapter 11, "and we can expect more filings in the future," warns Butler.
Finally, liberal American Catholics have long argued that the church needs to update its teachings on sex -- widely ignored by lay Catholics in the U.S. and Europe. But such arguments have never impressed Ratzinger.
STEADY AS SHE GOES. In a recent statement on same-sex marriage, Ratzinger's office argued, "Marriage [between a man and woman] is holy, while homosexual acts go against the natural moral law.... Sacred Scripture condemns homosexual acts�[as] a serious depravity."
At 78, Benedict XVI is a full two decades older than John Paul II was when he took office in 1978. Thus, Benedict's reign is likely to be considerably shorter. Given his forceful personality and razor-sharp intellect, he may still make waves. But a sea change in the church? Don't count on it.
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With Ann Therese Palmer in Chicago, Gail Edmondson in Frankfurt, and Geri Smith in Mexico City
By William C. Symonds / BusinessWeek Online
Pope Benedict's Vexed Inheritance
The staunchly conservative new Pontiff could surprise by tackling some of the thorny issues dividing his flock. Few believe he will.
There's an old saying in the Catholic Church that a fat Pope is followed by a thin Pope. To put it another way: The conclave of cardinals that elects the next Pope is typically influenced by a pendulum effect, in which the group seeks a successor who will undo some of the excesses of his predecessor.
This time, however, the pendulum seems to have gotten stuck. Though Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger has chosen the name Benedict XVI, "there will be so little change [in many areas] that he will, in effect, be John Paul III," predicts Philip Jenkins, professor of history at Penn State and an expert on global Christianity. Indeed, as head of the powerful Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith since 1981, Ratzinger was long the Vatican's second most powerful official, and the man who provided the intellectual defense for John Paul II's brand of conservative Catholicism.
Ratzinger's election comes as a great disappointment to many American Catholics, who were hoping for a more progressive reformer who would aggressively tackle the many problems facing the church, from a growing shortage of priests to mounting financial strains and a governance crisis in which power has been centralized in the Vatican.
GLOBAL ISSUES. "He will be a polarizing [Pope]," worries Dean Hoge, a sociologist who studies the Church at the Catholic University of America. While conservatives will applaud the selection of a doctrinal hardliner, Hoge predicts reformers will also be emboldened in their opposition. As a result, "It will be much harder to find common ground, and that may weaken the Church," he says.
There's also skepticism that the new Benedict XVI will be able to solve some of the church's most pressing global problems. Take Western Europe, where Catholicism has been marginalized as a social and political force. As the former Archbishop of Munich, the German Ratzinger certainly understands the problem. But his "style has been to condemn secularization and globalization," says Thomas Groome, a theology professor at Boston College. "That will hardly be effective."
Jenkins worries that Ratzinger may take a harder line towards Islam than his predecessor. And in Latin America, the new Pope will likely draw mixed reactions, figures Father Pedro Benitez Mestre, 32, who teaches theology at Panamerican University, which is supported by the conservative lay Catholic Opus Dei movement.
BRIDGE-BUILDING NAMESAKE. In Mexico, where Opus Dei is especially strong, Ratzinger's vehement attacks on religious relativism should play well. But those more concerned with social issues will be disappointed. "There will be a feeling that the cardinals took a step backwards," predicts Benitez, who fears the new Pope will do little about the region's crushing poverty, or international debt relief for poor countries.
Still, Benedict XVI could surprise the many skeptics. Now that he has finally become Pope at age 78, he could use his authority to push for solutions to some of the Church's most pressing issues. "If he tackled them, he could do so with great credibility because he has such conservative credentials," argues Groome. He draws an analogy to cold war hardliner Richard Nixon being able to open the door to China as President, precisely because no one could accuse him of being soft on communism.
And in Germany, Ratzinger's decision to choose the papal name Benedict XVI is being hailed as conciliatory move. Their hope is that he will follow in the footsteps of Benedict XV, who became Pope in 1914 and worked to build bridges in a bitterly divided church.
A WOMAN'S PLACE. But for now, many experts worry that if Ratzinger hews to his established line, long-standing problems could worsen. Take the shortage of priests. In the U.S., the average parish priest is around 60, and must look after 1,500 parishioners, up from 650 in 1950. And in Latin America, where the church is losing market share to evangelical Protestants, the shortage is so acute that "the local Protestant pastor can respond in one hour if there's a crisis, but it might take the Catholic priest two weeks," says Jenkins.
Reformers argue the solution is to open up the priesthood to married men and women. But a letter to bishops issued by Ratzinger's office last year argued that the priesthood should be "reserved...solely to men," and that "women are called to be unique examples and witnesses for all Christians of how the Bride is to respond in love to the love of the Bridegroom."
Hoge flatly predicts, "He won't allow priests to marry." Instead, "he'll be a lot more aggressive about inviting young men to join the priesthood," says Frank Butler, director of the Foundations & Donors Interested in Catholic Activities, which represents major U.S. Catholic foundations. But few believe that will be very effective.
THE INSIDER. Nor does Ratzinger's long career as a top official of the Vatican Curia suggest Benedict XVI will be predisposed to decentralize decisionmaking, by giving more authority to bishops and lay leaders. Instead, "I think he will continue Pope John Paul II's pattern of centering decisionmaking in Rome," says Charles Zech, an expert on church finances who teaches at Villanova University. "He was the Pope's right-hand man, and an insider, so you probably won't see a big increase in collegiality."
Such a stance would frustrate many American Catholics, who have been pressing for an increased voice for the faithful in the wake of the priest sex-abuse scandal. Ratzinger's deep knowledge of the inner workings of the Vatican could help him shore up its finances, which have recently slipped into the red. But few experts believe he will be able to do much about the church's deepening financial woes in the U.S. Because of lawsuits filed since the sex-abuse scandal broke, three U.S. dioceses are already in Chapter 11, "and we can expect more filings in the future," warns Butler.
Finally, liberal American Catholics have long argued that the church needs to update its teachings on sex -- widely ignored by lay Catholics in the U.S. and Europe. But such arguments have never impressed Ratzinger.
STEADY AS SHE GOES. In a recent statement on same-sex marriage, Ratzinger's office argued, "Marriage [between a man and woman] is holy, while homosexual acts go against the natural moral law.... Sacred Scripture condemns homosexual acts�[as] a serious depravity."
At 78, Benedict XVI is a full two decades older than John Paul II was when he took office in 1978. Thus, Benedict's reign is likely to be considerably shorter. Given his forceful personality and razor-sharp intellect, he may still make waves. But a sea change in the church? Don't count on it.
With Ann Therese Palmer in Chicago, Gail Edmondson in Frankfurt, and Geri Smith in Mexico City
Mae mogan nomomoskar, mhojo noman. Mogachea bhava bhoinino, mhaka hea tumchea mankulea Goeant eun he misache bhettent vanto gheunk khup khushalkai bogta. (My dear brothers and sisters, I am delighted to come to your tiny Goa to participate in this Eucharistic Celebrations)
+Pope John Paul II�s speech in Konkani at Campal,Goa on 6-02-1986.
http://videos.phototributes.com/pellerinfh/PopeJohnPaulII_files/PopeJohnPaulII.html
MAY BALL 2005
Organized by Goan Welfare Society (GWS)-Kuwait
Date: 12th May 2005, Venue: Safir Palace Hotel, Riggea
Band: Stepping Stones Highlights: Crowning of the MAY QUEEN 2005.
Enjoy the Goan hospitality at its best.
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A quote for your thought:
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