Joining us now…VOA Reporter Jack Payton.
Jack lived in Rome for many years and spent much of that time covering the Roman Catholic Church for various news organizations. Thanks for joining us, Jack.
Jack, how big of a surprise was the pope’s announcement of his resignation?
This was a huge surprise. It came as a shock even to the pope’s own inner circle. His own brother knew about it but very few other people did.
Yet there are some reports that suggest he had been planning this for a while.
Well, the pope gave an interview in 2010 in which he said that if a pope becomes infirmed or is unable to do his job he should consider stepping down. Well I think the pope took his own advice.
Jack, what do you think the legacy is that the pope is leaving behind?
Pope Benedict was a conservative theologically. He believed in conserving the old traditions of the church, as did his predecessor Pope John Paul II. And I think if there’s a legacy there it’s in that conservatism, but also in the makeup of the College of Cardinals. What’s interesting here is that of the 118 cardinals who will be voting on the new pope, 67 of them were chosen by Pope Benedict. The others remaining were chosen by John Paul II. So between the two of them the entire College of Cardinals, the range is much more narrow than it used to be.
Now his conservative position created some controversy for him over the years.
【The life and resignation of Pope Benedict the 16th】相关文章:
★ Messages of hope for working class
★ A Small Almond-shaped Brooch
★ The Story Of The Farmer And His Donkey
★ The Cobbler and the banker皮匠和银行家
★ I am nature's greatest miracle 1
最新
2020-12-21
2020-08-06
2020-07-31
2020-07-30
2020-07-30
2020-07-30