Category: The Pope

Guestblogger <Rule 15b>Sal</Rule15b> writes:

When I went up to go to confession Saturday, someone had placed a picture of the Pope on an easel in the narthex and draped it in black. The picture was “the red and gold” photo – one of the earliest official portraits. When I looked closer, I saw that the face and body were in bas relief: the picture was made of pressed plastic. And it was in one of those frames that aren’t even real wood, but wood-grained contact paper over pressboard. It had probably been hanging in the church office for twenty years., or someone brought it from home. Which is one of the things I love about the Church – we can be tacky and magnificent at the same time.

Sunday morning, my oldest daughter – the one I was expecting when John Paul II was elected- came over with our granddaughter to pick up some moving boxes.

“You know what we did last night? “ she asked. “ We just lay in bed and watched the coverage of the Pope’s life for hours. Jake said ‘Why are we doing this?’ but we couldn’t turn it off. It was so fascinating.”

Now you need to understand that our son-in-law is completely unchurched and innocent of any religious background at all. He’s not hostile towards religion – just doesn’t know anything about it. For him to watch hours of cable news about a man who didn’t even touch the periphery of his experience means something.

“You just can’t help but like him, “he said.

I didn’t convert until 1985, six years into this papacy. I credit the Pope’s unwavering stand on the things that actually matter with reassuring me that the Church really was indefectible, that rough patches could be overcome, and that God does provide- in this case, the right man for the job. And that in spite of the surrounding seeming chaos, it was still perfectly possible to be a good Catholic. At the time, my friends cautioned: “Oh, he’s okay – but what about the next guy? Huh?” After twenty years in the Church, I’m sure the “next guy” will do just fine.

I have not been blogging for the past few days, and may not resume for a few days more for reasons that will become apparent momentarily, but I did want to join the rest of St. Blog’s Parish in commenting — if briefly — on the passing of John Paul II.  Co-blogger, Tim Jones, recently posted asking commenters Where Were You? [when you heard of the Pope’s passing].  My answer:

I had just called a friend to inform her that my father had died about a half-hour previously after a long illness.  She exclaimed, "He and the Pope together?"  That’s when I found out that John Paul had died.  Later, I would learn that my dad had preceded the Pope by about twenty minutes.

In the months before my father’s death, from an illness which we had known for some time would be terminal, I found myself thinking it would be lovely that — when the time came — he might pass into eternity on a Carmelite feast day.  I have an interest in Carmelite spirituality, a love for St. Therese of Lisieux, and my mother passed away this past December on the feast of St. John of the Cross.  It did not look likely, though, since I could think of no upcoming Carmelite feasts and it appeared that my father would die soon.

Unsurprisingly, I underestimated God.  With the passing of John Paul II, God created a Carmelite feast for the day of my dad’s birth into eternity.  John Paul II was a third-order Carmelite who wrote a doctoral thesis on the spirituality of St. John of the Cross.  It is a great grace and comfort that both of my fathers, natural and spiritual, entered the next life together.

Dad, Holy Father: Requiescat In Pace.

Note:  For more on the incredible circumstances surrounding the date of John Paul’s death, please see this piece by Mark Shea.

An Irish betting firm called "Paddy Power" is offering odds on both who will be the next pope will be and what name he will choose.

Among the odds offered on different candidates:

• Tettamanzi (Italy) . . . 11-4.
• Arinze (Nigeria) . . . 11-4.
• Ratzinger (Germany) . . . 7-1.
• Hummes (Brazil) . . . 9-1.
• Schoenborn (Austria) . . . 14-1.

GET THE FULL LIST.

Among the odds on names:

• John Paul . . . 2-1.
• John . . . 3-1.
• Paul . . . 5-1.
• Pius . . . 10-1.
• Peter . . . 50-1.

GET THE FULL LIST.

(Cowboy hat tip to the reader who e-mailed!)

I’m getting a number of requests for information regarding whether or not the pope is embalmed after his death.

Fortunately, a kindly reader provides the following:

Here is an interesting article stating that John Paul II was not embalmed — don’t know if you’ve read this yet.

http://www.freep.com/news/latestnews/pm3603_20050405.htm

And here is another article that was in the same paper earlier in the day about the same subject, but a different angle.

http://www.freep.com/news/religion/embalm5e_20050405.htm

I’m getting a number of requests for information regarding whether or not the pope is embalmed after his death.

Fortunately, a kindly reader provides the following:

Here is an interesting article stating that John Paul II was not embalmed — don’t know if you’ve read this yet.

http://www.freep.com/news/latestnews/pm3603_20050405.htm

And here is another article that was in the same paper earlier in the day about the same subject, but a different angle.

http://www.freep.com/news/religion/embalm5e_20050405.htm

GENERAL SPECULATION.

AFRICAN SPECULATION.

ACCOUNT #1 (WHEREIN IT IS SAID THAT HE PASSED JUST AFTER THE CELEBRATION OF THE VIGIL MASS FOR DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY WAS CELEBRATED IN HIS PRESENCE).

ACCOUNT #2 (WHEREIN IT IS SAID THAT HE PROFESSED HIMSELF HAPPY UPON HIS DEATHBED.)

Fortunatley, The Weekly Standard is willing to expose The Washington Post’s evilness for what it is.

GET THE STORY.

A reader writes:

I don’t know much about the Eastern Catholic Rites. Are there Eastern Cardinals? Are they eligable to become Pope? Would they then switch to the Latin Rite? If not, what would it mean for the Church?

In order: There are Eastern Cardinals. They are eligible to become Pope. What would happen regarding the different churches sui iuris within the Catholic Church if one were elected pope is unknown. Most likely the gentleman would maintain membership in two of the Churches sui iuris: his own and the Latin church.

It is unthinkable that he would quit his own and join the Latin church. The election of such a cardinal would be the finest moment of his native church, and it would be inconceivable for him to say "Now that I’m pope, I’m outta here. See ya later. I’m a Latin now."

Another reader writes:

I have heerd that a lay man can be elected Pope…Is this true or was it ever true?

You heerd right! In principle, a layman can be elected pope. Canon law requires that if the person elected pope is not yet a bishop that he be consecrated a bishop immediately, upon which he becomes pope (him having already accepted his election to the papacy prior to being consecrated a bishop).

The odds of this happening are about three billion to one.

GET THE STORY.