Why do some Catholics see the pope's resignation as sad?

[EvilAL]

I'd been reading in various places yesterday and today that it "is/was a sad day". How is it sad? He quit. He didn't suddenly die or get assassinated, he quit. Are they sad for him? for the institution? I mean really.. he quit!! If anything I think people should be angry especially if they believe the divine inspiration that got him picked in the first place.

[hrmjustin]

1. As an ex Roman Catholic turned Episcopalian I found it sad.

It was mixture of the sadness of the scandal of what happened to all those victims, the scandal of the actions of the bishops and the pope, and an elderly man saying good-bye.
It was just sad watching the whole thing, but it was the right decision on his part. I hope the Church cleans up it's act and protects it's members from predators.

[upaloopa]

5. I think they live in a place in their mind where they go to every Sunday.

I am a recovering Catholic and my brother is a priest. I visit him and he has some of his church people over for dinner. I think they live in a Catholic bubble. Not my brother but he doesn't talk about it to them. My brother did not like the pope but he isn't going to tell his church people.

[EvilAL]

13. Maybe your brother should tell

his congregation. A lot of them may feel the same way and/or hearing it from their priest might carry more weight than from a neighbour or friend.

[upaloopa]

15. His superiors won't permit it. They know he is progressive

and keep him in check. He is in El Cajon east of San Diego. Very conservative church there.
Last year he tried to start yoga class for seniors and he was slammed in the Catholic newspaper they have.

[EvilAL]

21. That's too bad,

and doesn't help the way other view the church, if change doesn't happen from inside I fear it never will. Thanks for your reply.

[EvilAL]

6. Thanks,

I have a hard time getting behind the sadness of it. It seems that people aren't exactly sad for the ex-pope, but for the whole ordeal that seems to have caused him to resign. A sad day for the church as an institution, that's something I can accept as being sad for to true believers of the church.

[cbayer]

2. He may never be heard from again and there are those that love him for whatever reasons.

Also, I think there is reason to believe that his resignation is a reflection on how messed up the RCC is right now. There have been a couple of analyses I have seen that said that he found the dossiers and other information he became privy to absolutely unbearable.

I don't feel sad in the least, but I do feel a little ray of hope that the church will take this opportunity to take a step forward and not backwards.

[Goblinmonger]

4. If the RCC (and this pope) were interested in taking a step forward

they (he) would not have appointed the backward leaning cardinals they (he) did to pick the next pope.

Welcome the new pope, same as the old pope. Anyone who thinks differently is just kidding themselves.

[EvilAL]

12. I don't expect any change in the RCC

either, maybe they will take a kick or two but I don't think they are going anywhere anytime soon.

[EvilAL]

8. That could be a reason for some

that truly believed in him and the papacy, but it would seem to me to be that in those cases they would feel betrayed.

[cbayer]

10. Don't know about you, but sadness generally goes hand in hand with betrayal when

it happens to me.

[EvilAL]

11. Yeah, that's true,

but anger sticks it's hand in there as well and usually slaps the other 2 around a bit. heheh

[cbayer]

16. It's so much easier when an emotion can be experienced in isolation, but

how often does that really happen?

I know that I felt very ambivalent yesterday. I am no fan of the RCC or the pope, but felt somewhat defensive at points. That confused me.

Anyway, I am interested in what they do at this point. Unfortunately those that are going to do the decision making don't have much of anything in the way of liberal or progressive leanings to make me very optimistic, but one can always hope.

[EvilAL]

23. Who knows,

maybe he was holding it back, or trying to change it. Either way it casts an even darker shadow over the vatican.

[southernyankeebelle]

3. I dunno. Am catholic and I am happy as hell he is gone. I never liked him from day

one. There is something about him and I don't know what it is I don't like. He gives me the Eck factor.

[EvilAL]

14. He looks like he's up to

something nefarious all the time. Like he's doing an evil scientist laugh under his breath. hehehh

[southernyankeebelle]

17. From your lips to god's ears. Maybe god forced him out. I don't get this retirement crap.

It doesn't pass the smell test. Something or somebody is black mailing him. I wouldn't be surprised.

[EvilAL]

22. Or he wants to spend more time

playing on his new iPad. heheh
Blackmail certainly is an option, I can't see what could be worse than the things he is already accused of.

[southernyankeebelle]

24. I dunno but there could be.

[EvilAL]

25. Agreed. Too bad we'll probably never know. nt

[southernyankeebelle]

27. Indeed and that is what pisses me off.

[MADem]

32. He probably does want to spend more time with his family--he has a brother in Germany.

I'm thinking the brother will probably have to come to him--neither one of them are spring chickens, but I don't think Benedict will be doing much travelling, because he might be concerned about arrest or being charged with accessory-type crimes. I would be surprised if he ventures far from that converted convent they've fixed up for him.

If he has an iPad, the two brothers can Skype!

[EvilAL]

33. Yeah he has one,

he, well someone, opened a twitter account for him. Hilarity ensued on the internet. I think his handle is Pontifex or something.

here's a link with a vid of him posting..
http://www.theverge.com/2012/12/12/3754574/pope-benedict-xvi-first-tweet

[Walk away]

31. Maybe he and Georg are thinking of starting a family!

Now that they have their own private Vatican love shack.

[southernyankeebelle]

36. Not unless they have a miracle

[goldent]

40. Clearly the papal election is not based on looks

When I first saw Pope Benedict, I immediately thought that his looks were going to be a big liability. I wonder if the Cardinals even thought about it, but whether it is fair or not, it is incredibly important -- people's perception is based very much on physical looks. Of course it is very big in American politics today.

[southernyankeebelle]

41. He just looks sneaky. I don't mean it as good looking or not good looking. Maybe it

is a personality thing. I don't know. I don't think the Cardinals think that way. I think they want to know what's in it for them. I think its that simple. I don't think it will be better because he picked many of these newer Cardinals.

[goldent]

44. yeah, maybe "not good looking" is not the right term

Last edited Sat Mar 2, 2013, 12:41 PM - Edit history (1)

It may be better to say "a problem with this looks." It was a problem for him, because it gave many people a bad first impression, and they extend their reaction to his looks to him as a person. I would not say these people are wrong - our culture/society teaches us to think this way.

Look at the grief Hillary has gotten over her appearance over the last few years (as well as many years ago). It's not right, but if she had any thoughts for president (after loosing in 2008) she should have a personal "appearance" adviser.

Edit: Typos

[southernyankeebelle]

45. Personally I think Hillary is a nice looking woman. But I the whole I think your

right.

[goldent]

46. I agree with you about Hillary

and while it shouldn't matter, I have to say there have been times she hasn't looked her best - but I understand that long flights and working outside of your timezone can really wear you down. I tend to think she doesn't worry about it, but in today's society, it matters.

[southernyankeebelle]

49. I'm with Hillary. She is in her 60s and I think travelling around the world like that really

wears on a person. We all have to make allowances for that. I know when I travel and by the time I get where I am suppose to I look like I've been to hell and back.

[MADem]

7. Because "Ya Don't QUIT."

It's just not done.

It suggests that there's trouble, right here in Vatican City....With a capital V and that rhymes with P and that stands for PEDOPHILE.

They know. This whole mess is not going to be kicked over and forgotten. There will be no "moving forward." "The Faith" will be tainted as a consequence.

And quite likely, the world will soon discover that it is all far, far worse than was once believed.

Will it be "O'Malley To the Rescue?" The corollary to that, if he can't fix it, is "Blame That Lousy Big Mouthed AMERICAN--everyone hates them, and the clown in the brown robe can take the heat for us!"....that's assuming he gets the gig.

Or, will it be someone OLD, and SAFE? "Give it to (fill in name of old dude)--he'll hold Xmas mass and say nothing from the balcony for a dozen years, and we can try to push this mess off for a bit..."

Or, will it be someone clueless, without political nuance? "Give it to (insert name of guppy), he'll be dead before he figures out how the system works, and we can pull the strings!"

Whoever they pick, one can only hope that the guy is reform-minded and won't be swayed by fancy robes and a personal chef (and I'd get a food taster, if I were him....).

[EvilAL]

9. Yeah,

what are they gonna do now is a good question as well. I am just trying to wrap my head around the sadness of it.

[southernyankeebelle]

18. Hey MADem, Who knew, your a Poet. Wonderful

[MADem]

19. I watched "The Music Man" more times than I care to count...!

It used to be a staple on USA TV--not quite "Wizard of Oz" or "Sound of Music"--but a big deal, nonetheless!

And I was thrilled to see it, too...on a TELEVISION! In COLOR, sometimes--now that was a treat!! Not at my house, either--we had crappy black and white, when we bothered to have tv!

When I lived outside USA, we had a radio and had to visit wealthy friends to see a few tv shows! No Music Man, then--but we did occasionally get the Flintstones, in the native language, without subtitles.

[southernyankeebelle]

20. Yes, I lived overseas as a young kid. We didn't have tv. We went to the movies all

the time. I remember in second grade we paid $.25 cents to see the Wizard of Oz. I remember being a little scared. But it was so good. I didn't get to see the Flintstones gosh until I was a teen. I fell in love with that show. I knew you got it from a movie I just couldn't remember which one. I wasn't much into the Music Man. I loved the Sound of Music.

When I was a kid living in Germany living on the base we use to listen to the radio. Remember the Green Hornet, The Long Ranger. Wow you had to make sure you didn't miss an episode.

[MADem]

30. Here is the song, in all its glory--I warn you, it's an earworm!

An old school con man at the top of his game!! One of the original uses of the "Think of the CHILDREN" argument!

[southernyankeebelle]

35. Thanks for the memory. They just don't make good musical anymore.

Of course he was some con man.

[cleanhippie]

37. Yep. It's likely to be much worse than we all think it is.

And as the leader of this clown show, he is a coward for running away from it.

[MADem]

38. Andrew Sullivan, as he often does, has postulated a rather dramatic theory.

He's written many essays down the years--for awhile there he was hopeful that the Pope preceding this last pontiff would "see the light" and allow him to return to the fold. That pope didn't see things his way, and neither did this one.

If he's right, now that would be very interesting indeed.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/27/andrew-sullivan-pope-is-gay_n_2776603.html

"

So Benedict’s handsome male companion will continue to live with him, while working for the other Pope during the day," Sullivan writes. "Are we supposed to think that’s, well, a normal arrangement?"

Clearly, Sullivan does not.

The article and links are instructive...

[peacebird]

26. My 86 year old mom heard the news & declared "now I can return to church". I was amazed!

[Skittles]

28. your mom rawwwwwwks

[peacebird]

42. Thanks, Skittles!

She is an avid Democrat, and a strong supporter of GLBT rights (even though the are no GLBT) family members. She is a very classy strong southern lady.

[EvilAL]

29. Really. I never

thought about how many people may have been boycotting the church due to their dislike of Benedict. Maybe the higher ups felt the same way.. Like upaloopa said upthread, her brother is a priest and didn't like him. I wonder if it is the scandals and he took all the flack for it or what. I'm not a church goer, but if it made your mom happy it can't be too bad.

[peacebird]

43. I knew my mom had stopped going to church, but had not put 2+2 together til Benedict resigned

Then she came straight out and said it - the very first words out of her mouth! I was stunned. Absolutely shocked, but suddenly her skipping Mass for the past several years made total sense.

[Blue4Texas]

34. Because

To me it smacks of a cover-up that led to his resignation. 

[goldent]

39. I think people are saddened by the end of anything

I was saddened by the end of the TV series "Cheers" and it was just a sitcom.

It is for me just a tiny bit sad about the Pope. I am more happy that he is leaving while still in reasonable health. I saw Pope John Paul II in his late years, in person and not prepped for TV, and it was quick shocking and sad how "out of it" he seemed. And he was younger than Pope Benedict is now.

[EvilAL]

47. That could be a reason for some

for some people as well. Makes sense. I still find it strange, but it's nice to get opinions.

[pinto]

48. Maybe a recognition that the institution is seriously flawed? His abdication may have been

the heads up for many. Or just a general sense of loss? I think change, in any venue, incorporates loss.

I hope this entails an opening for Catholics, the bureaucracy especially, to accept and support change.