Socci: Pope Francis is ready to resign “because of health, not age”

Started by Optatus, August 24, 2021, 05:22:00 PM

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Optatus

QuoteIn the Vatican there is ever-more-insistent talk of a new conclave. Pope Francis is said to have revealed that he intends to resign. This coming December, among other things, he will turn 85, the age that Benedict XVI was when he resigned. But the reason for Bergoglio's resignation would not be so much age as the state of his health, which came into the spotlight in a sudden and unforeseen way with the surgery he underwent on 4 July at Gemelli Hospital [in Rome]. Actually, it is said that it was not a planned procedure (it is said that even the Secretary of State Cardinal Parolin did not know about the hospitalization). Furthermore, it seems that the doctors at Gemelli wanted to keep the Pope in the hospital longer. For the media and the Vatican, the topic of the pope's health has always been problematic. Among those criticizing the official Vatican communication in this affair was above all the website Il Sismografo which is always defined as "paravatican" because of its close ties to the Secretariat of State (it is definitely based on Bergoglian positions).

MANY QUESTIONS

Already on 6 July, the director of Il Sismografo, Luis Badilla, wrote, "The information that one decides to amplify by means of the press must be extremely transparent and extremely authoritative. If one is talking about medical updates, the text must carry the signature of the doctor or the medical team, giving their full names; if several days of hospitalization are anticipated after colon surgery, clinical support must be given for such an affirmation. Journalists exist in order to ask questions and seek the greatest possible truth, not to simply act as microphone stands; otherwise, the real facts cannot be distinguished from journalistic hypotheses."

The next day, in an article titled "Pope Francis does not need flattery in the press," Badilla rejoiced at the good progress made by the Holy Father, but he added: "There is, however, a very significant detail that during these hours many people are underestimating, ignoring, or manipulating: the disease that has struck Pope Francis is severe and degenerative. It could also be chronic. Of course, the Holy Father will return to the Vatican to resume his journey in the footsteps of Peter, but he will never be the same again. All of the rhetoric about Jorge Mario Bergoglio as a superman damages his image and his charisma... He knows that he will have to greatly change his life: fatigue, rest, limits, nutrition, physical rehabilitative therapy."

A month after the operation, Badilla noted that the press releases "on the health of the Pontiff" have always been issued by the Vatican Press Office and "they have never been signed by the doctors and by the Gemelli Clinic," adding that "there remain some open questions that it has never been possible to the doctors who care for the Pope's health, above all about the prognosis, which – although it is a question that is never addressed – remains confidential." Many questions, about which the website Infovaticanapublished an article titled "The health of the Pope is not what they are saying." The possibility that it may be health problems (which we all hope are not serious) leading the pope to consider resigning is more than probable.

THE INTERVIEWS

Over the years, Pope Bergoglio has spoken several times in interviews about his possible resignation, but always as a hypothesis about a far-off future. Today it seems that it has become a present hypothesis. The first one to speak about "the air of a conclave" was a long-time Vatican journalist like Sandro Magister, who on 13 July titled his article on his widely followed blog as follows: "Conclave in View, Everyone Backing Away From Francis." He did not focus on the pope's health, although he was writing shortly after the operation, but rather he examined two "twin books" that just came out: La Chiesa Brucia [The Church is Burning] and Il Gregge Smarrito [The Lost Flock]. "Both books," Magister noted, diagnose a poor state of health for the Church, with a marked deterioration during the present pontificate." But "the books' authors are not at all opponents of Pope Francis," the Vaticanist added.

The first book was written by Andrea Riccardi, a Church historian and the founder of the Saint Egidio Community. The Pope listens closely to Riccardi, and often receives him in private audience. The Pope entrusted him – among other things – with the direction of the spectacular inter-religious summit presided over by Francis himself last 20 October [2020] in the Piazza del Campidoglio.

The second book was written by a brand-new association called "Essere Qui [Be Here]" led by 89-year-old Giuseppe De Rita, the founder of Censis [an economic research foundation] and "the dean of Italian sociologists," as well as a progressive Catholic intellectual of the Montinian era. Already in the preceding weeks, strong criticism had come against Pope Bergoglio from the progressive-Catholic world due to some of his recent decisions. This gives the feeling that we are at the end of a season.

In his article, however, Magister, emphasized the repositioning that is currently under way, not only by Bergoglian intellectuals (to whom we could also add the media) but also by cardinals considered to be the closest ones to Francis: "The time has come to take distance from the reigning pope, if you aim to succeed him." In fact, the general situation of the Church, which is dramatic, could also be driving the decision to resign: it is enough to recall the conflicts with the German and American episcopates (the two nations that give the most donations to the Vatican), the bleak statistics on religious practice and vocations in the past few years, the confusion that is spreading among the faithful concerning a hierarchy that seems too different with respect to the clear and authoritative Magisterium of the preceding popes; then there are the scandals, the dead end of the reform of the Curia, the trial currently underway in the Vatican, the doctrinal controversies...

THE CANON

However – for a pope who has always been extremely active like Bergoglio – the problem of health has a huge impact. One week after the surgery, a long article was published in the Argentine daily La Nacion, which is close to the pope, about "the difficult questions raised by Francis's advanced age." The subtitle of the article explained that, after the surgery, there began to be talk of a possible resignation. According to the Argentine daily, "Vatican observers" believe "unanimously that Francis is not close to resigning," but – we observe – this also happened on the eve of the resignation of Benedict XVI. "I can't imagine Francis resigning as long as Benedict is still alive," said Christopher Bellitto, a papal historian at Kean University in Union, New Jersey. "Having a pope emeritus already creates confusion. Having two would end up complicating the picture." However, this question is beginning to be addressed in a "scientific" manner by canonists and theologians who seem to be preparing the ground for official provisions of the Holy See to precisely define the case record relative to the Petrine ministry after Benedict XVI resigned and called himself "pope emeritus" (an entirely new expression in the history of the Church).

The canonist Geraldina Boni has just published "a proposal of law, which is the fruit of collaboration [of experts] in canonical science, on the totally impeded Roman See and the resignation of the Pope" so that "the supreme legislator may draw out reasoned and well-argued ideas for the promulgation of legislation on these issues: norms that now seem urgent and cannot be postponed." Why such an urgency after eight years in which the problem of the co-existence of two popes seemed to be ignored by everyone? Is it perhaps because there is a new conclave in the air? La Nacion, after having assured that Pope Francis is well and that he is not on the point of resigning, reports the thoughts of Alberto Melloni, a Church historian who is an intellectual symbol of progressive Catholicism. According to Melloni, the pontificate of Pope Francis has entered the final chapter: "When a pope gets old, we enter unknown and uncertain territory." This does not mean, in his opinion, that Pope Bergoglio is necessarily on the eve of his resignation, but that popes now will no longer want to wait for a very advanced age and a state of poor health before resigning. According to Melloni, who sees the risk of the Vatican bureaucracy taking over, "if a pope wants to resign, he must find the right moment, before his weakness becomes too apparent." And Francis, in the last few weeks, half-serious and half-joking, said to someone that next spring there could be a new pope.

https://www.marcotosatti.com/2021/08/24/socci-pope-francis-is-ready-to-resign-because-of-health-not-age/

I wonder if the rumours published by Vox Cantoris are true after all.

Prayerful

Francis has been rumoured to be on the point of resigning for ten years. Sometimes he himself said he might like to be a Pope Emeritus like Benedict, which I doubt. Francis might be gay friendly, but not a masochist. Benedict is a helpless and pitiful figure.
Padre Pio: Pray, hope, and don't worry. Worry is useless. God is merciful and will hear your prayer.

Tennessean

Why not do some sudokus and pray all day instead of resign? When you go you go, there's been old popes before. I don't get it.

mikemac

Next spring eh.  Just in time for Cardinal Burke to fully recover and get strong.
Like John Vennari (RIP) said "Why not just do it?  What would it hurt?"
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MaximGun

Perhaps Conchita Gonzales misheard and Our Lady said "three simultaneous popes", not three more.  Probably a strategy to confuse the mob firing bullets and arrows at them.  "Ali, which Pope should I kill first?"

This is just getting very silly now.  Whose the Pope, I'm the Pope, he's the Pope, no they're the Pope.

I can see why they abandoned the papal throne.  When does the papal bench arrive?


Tennessean


Santantonio

The next Pope after Benedict would be the last according to the prophecy (we don't have to believe in the prophecy, though) so, it's not going to be the subsequent to "Francis", but the next after "Benedict XVI". This doesn't mean Francis is truly Pope, only Heaven and a handful of men know that, but since it is quite possible that Benedict XVI is the true pope, he has to die before the final Petrus Romanus is in charge.  After that, if the prophecy isn't fulfilled, it wasn't valid. In the case the next pope is installed while Benedict XVI is alive, however, then it could be interpreted that St. Malachy didn't include Antipopes in his list. It would proceed, still 1 more time.

To those of us who consider Benedict XVI a valid Pope (I know that's not everyone here), if he did not canonically resign, then Francis is an Antipope, or, at least, an "anti-Bishop of Rome", if Benedict XVI kept the munus, and merely retired the ministry. Therefore, if Benedict XVI dies first, Francis would be Antipope for real. If Francis dies or resigns first, the process continues until Benedict XVI dies, after which, if Benedict XVI was alive when the Conclave took place, this new "Pope" might only be Bishop of Rome but not Pope, because Benedict XVI was still Pope when he was seated.

I've thought for a couple years now - half expected - that Benedict XVI and Francis would exit the scene at NEAR EXACTLY the SAME TIME. This would free up the situation. Francis is fully congnizant of it. I would not be surprised at all if he times his retirement with Benedict XVI's mortal passing.

Maximilian

Quote from: Santantonio on August 25, 2021, 03:14:03 PM

I've thought for a couple years now - half expected - that Benedict XVI and Francis would exit the scene at NEAR EXACTLY the SAME TIME. This would free up the situation.

Yes, there are historical precedents, where several rival claimants to the papacy were all deposed simultaneously.

Synod of Sutri (1046)

"Henry, most victorious king by the grace of God...When he arrived at the city of Sutri, he called the Roman clergy along with Pope Gregory to meet with him. He ordered a special synod to be held in the holy church of Sutri and there, lawfully and canonically, he sat in judgment upon Bishop John of Sabina, called Silvester; the archpriest John, called Gregory; and the aforementioned Pope Benedict."

Rome was in a state of warfare between noble factions, each of whom had a candidate they regarded as pope. A pope presided at St. Peter's, another at the Lateran and a third at Saint Mary Major. Two of them, Benedict IX, a scion of the counts of Tusculum, and Sylvester III of the Crescenzi clan, represented rival factions of the Roman nobility. The claim of the third, Gregory VI, was peculiar in that he had purchased the title in good faith from Benedict IX two years previously. Each claimant had a number of supporters in the Roman church and held a portion of the city.

The council summoned the three pontiffs, and both Sylvester and Gregory attended. The claims of all three popes were quickly dismissed. Sylvester was stripped of his sacerdotal rank and exiled to a monastery. Gregory resigned (his words were recorded as: "I, Gregory, bishop, servant of the servants of God, do hereby adjudge myself to be removed from the pontificate of the Holy Roman Church, because of the enormous error which by simoniacal impurity has crept into and vitiated my election."), and the council ended on December 23. A form of the council was repeated in Rome the following day to oversee the dismissal of Benedict. The papacy was declared to be sede vacante.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Sutri

Tennessean


King Wenceslas

Francis resign and give up the keys? Never.

Power is intoxicating for a despot like him. It would be like Stalin willingly giving up power. Not going to happen until his last dying breath.

Three years and he is room temperature.

Acolyte

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