Like everybody else, I cheered (literally!) when the election of Benedict XVI was announced. I called up a buncha folks and congratulated them, even though none had any influence on the papal election. It was simply a day for Catholics to congratulate each other.
I couldn’t wait to see what B16 would do as pope. I still can’t wait to see his first encyclical. Why isn’t it out already!?! (That’s my heart talking, not my head. I know that first papal encyclicals usually aren’t out this quick.)
Amid the euphoria, though, I recognized that B16 was unlikely to approach his pontificate with the "Let’s kick some serious butt!" attitude that I knew many would wish. His reputation as a rottweiler is . . . well . . . rot.
The man is far more patient and gentle than his enemies and even many of his friends, or at least fans, give him credit for.
Make no mistake: I expect great things from his pontificate, and I pray that God gives him a long reign as pope, but the great things that I just know are in the offing will be delivered in a kindler and gentler and more nuanced manner than many expect. (Joseph Ratzinger is nothing if not nuanced.)
We’re already seeing signs of that, and we’ll see more in the future.
HERE’S GEORGE WEIGEL TALKING ABOUT THIS SUBJECT. . . . IN PARTICULAR AS IT APPLIES TO THE LITURGY.
Joseph Ratzinger is a firm and faithful man, but he’s not a rash one.
Now that he’s the captain pro tempore of the bark of Peter, Benedict XVI’s orders to the helmsman are going to be more like a firm and faithful "Steady as she goes, Mister" rather than a frantic "Damn the torpedoes!" or "Fly her apart, then!"
It is true that there are crises affecting the Church that need decisive action, but these are unlikely to be handled in a frantic and heavy-handed manner. Popes tend to fall back on their own natures when dealing with problems, and Ratzinger’s nature is not to be frantic and heavy-handed.
One can also understand why popes tend to fall back on their own natures. Grace builds on nature, and if God has called one to the papacy, he expects one to utilize the nature he has given one as one attempts to fulfill its duties. The responsibilities of the office are so great and the future so unknown that, ultimately, all one can to much of the time is take one’s best guess about how to handle a situation and then entrust the results to God.
Holiness in this life and heaven in the next are what the Church is to aim for, but what currents and storms and rock and shoals one may encounter on the way there are unknowns. It is like sailing a ship where the standing orders are "Third star on the left, and straight on till morning."
Correct as usual, Jimmy.