So how is Pope Benny the 16th doing?

[Renew Deal]

I was thinking about this over the last week because I remembered the anniversary is coming up. Is he out and about? Has he accomplished anything in his first year? Has he changed anything? Are we all going to hell? What's up with our infallible Pope?

[CoffeeCat]

1. I don't know, but the man looks like the devil...

...and it really bothers me.

His face looks like he's lived a life full of hate and gritting his teeth.

The man could be a stunt double for Palpatine.

[Renew Deal]

2. I've been reading his wikipedia page

since I posted this. It's not too bad.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Benedict_XVI

Here's why he picked his name:

"Filled with sentiments of awe and thanksgiving, I wish to speak of why I chose the name Benedict. Firstly, I remember Pope Benedict XV, that courageous prophet of peace, who guided the Church through turbulent times of war. In his footsteps I place my ministry in the service of reconciliation and harmony between peoples. Additionally, I recall Saint Benedict of Norcia, co-patron of Europe, whose life evokes the Christian roots of Europe. I ask him to help us all to hold firm to the centrality of Christ in our Christian life: May Christ always take first place in our thoughts and actions!"

[shenmue]

4. Vampire bat

That's what he reminds me of.

:scared:

[foreverdem]

13. I can't look at him

He bothers me too. Something in his eyes, it's so dark looking and evil, he gives me the creeps. It's kind of ironic that I can't look at the pope and I'm catholic.

[benburch]

3. Not too bad for a former Nazi...

no pogroms yet!

[peace frog]

5. Give him time...

gays and anyone seeking contraceptive and/or abortion services should be afraid, be very afraid.

[Kerrytravelers]

8. Precisely. Just because there hasn't been a public announcement

doesn't mean shit is happening.

I'm Catholic. This guy isn't my pope. He was part of that don't give Kerry Communion disgrace. How dare he meddle in American politics.

[Bassic]

12. He'll croak before he can do any real harm. nt

[Kellanved]

14. We've been there before

The Nazi claim has no legs.

Also, you should remember that the Scholls, who you use as your theme, were Nazis. And they had not waited until it became mandatory; they joined on their own as soon as possible. So: membership in those organizations says little to nothing about later deeds.

[ShockediSay]

6. I dunno but the first Pope, Peter, I believe

was married.

[donheld]

7. Pope Benny needs to change "the Cardinals" to "the Jets"

:crazy:

[TexasProgresive]

9. Well you got some really helpful answers

Not one of the posters to your question know anything and just made up crap. A place to start is to read Deus Caritas Est his first and only encyclical publishes around Christmas.

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20051225_deus-caritas-est_en.html

INTRODUCTION

1. “God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him” (1 Jn 4:16). These words from the First Letter of John express with remarkable clarity the heart of the Christian faith: the Christian image of God and the resulting image of mankind and its destiny. In the same verse, Saint John also offers a kind of summary of the Christian life: “We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us”.

We have come to believe in God's love: in these words the Christian can express the fundamental decision of his life. Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction. Saint John's Gospel describes that event in these words: “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should ... have eternal life” (3:16). In acknowledging the centrality of love, Christian faith has retained the core of Israel's faith, while at the same time giving it new depth and breadth. The pious Jew prayed daily the words of the Book of Deuteronomy which expressed the heart of his existence: “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord, and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your might” (6:4-5). Jesus united into a single precept this commandment of love for God and the commandment of love for neighbour found in the Book of Leviticus: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself” (19:18; cf. Mk 12:29-31). Since God has first loved us (cf. 1 Jn 4:10), love is now no longer a mere “command”; it is the response to the gift of love with which God draws near to us.

In a world where the name of God is sometimes associated with vengeance or even a duty of hatred and violence, this message is both timely and significant. For this reason, I wish in my first Encyclical to speak of the love which God lavishes upon us and which we in turn must share with others. That, in essence, is what the two main parts of this Letter are about, and they are profoundly interconnected. The first part is more speculative, since I wanted here—at the beginning of my Pontificate—to clarify some essential facts concerning the love which God mysteriously and gratuitously offers to man, together with the intrinsic link between that Love and the reality of human love. The second part is more concrete, since it treats the ecclesial exercise of the commandment of love of neighbour. The argument has vast implications, but a lengthy treatment would go beyond the scope of the present Encyclical. I wish to emphasize some basic elements, so as to call forth in the world renewed energy and commitment in the human response to God's love.

[Bridget Burke]

10. Actual facts?

You'll confuse the jokesters.

Thanks.

[Bridget Burke]

11. "Pope Benedict gets a favourable report card"

Vatican City - Initially billed as a stern and somewhat unsympathetic intellectual, Joseph Ratzinger has proved surprisingly popular during his first year as Pope Benedict XVI. Vatican data shows that record crowds have been attending his weekly audiences while Italians have given the German-born pontiff 8 marks out of 10 so far, according to a recent opinion poll....

Unlike John Paul, however, Benedict has vowed to travel less, write less and to favour substance over form......

....his agreeing to meet famous Catholic dissidents like Hans Kueng or excommunicated Lefebvrite Bishop Bernard Fellay shows that he is unexpectedly willing to dialogue with those who do not share his views.....

Which brings us to one of the most closely-watched revolutions expected of Benedict: the reform of the Curia - the central administration governing the Roman Catholic Church. Ratzinger was never a fan of bureaucracy and many Vatican insiders hoped that the new pope would make significant changes to an over-inflated body that has in the past been accused of underestimating the impact of far-away problems, such as the sex scandals that have implicated Catholic priests in the United States and elsewhere.

More information here--for those who are really interested. Benedict remains conservative--but no more so than JPII, who distracted the world with his charisma.

www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=24&art_id=qw1143786963362R131

[malaise]

15. He showed up in Germany

and Merkel took over.