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shade’s peshar

I actually missed the article, but with the Pope’s Silver Jubilee there were substantially similar articles all over the place.  The “Papal-razzi” have been eyeing John Paul II’s declining health for well over ten years and making predictions on who/what comes next.  Personally, I’m surprised he has lasted as long as he has.  He had long made it clear that he wanted to be the guy who ushered the Catholic Church into the 21^st century physically (while moving it back to the 10^th century spiritually,) and my guess was that he’d kick the bucket shortly thereafter.    Most people have known he’s had Parkinson’s Disease for at least a decade, though it wasn’t until recently that the Catholic Church formally acknowledged this.  Still, he’s hanging in there, and seems determined to stick it out to the bitter end.

Then again, he doesn’t have much choice: once you’re Pope, you hold that post for life.  There is a myth that Popes can resign.  This has actually happened twice that I am aware of, but both cases are highly dubious.  

• In 657, Pope Martin I was kidnapped by the Byzantines and held prisoner, during which he either issued a letter (or more likely one was issued for him) announcing his “retirement” and turning control over to the Greek Orthodox in Constantinople.  The Roman Church accepted the resignation, rejected the power shift to Byzantium, and promptly elected a successor (Eugene I) while Martin was still alive.  Since Martin I’s “resignation” was either under duress or a flat-out forgery, it doesn’t count, and Eugene I’s ascension to the Throne of Peter was illegal.

• In 1294, political in-fighting between various Roman noble houses prevented the election of a Pope, so a hermit named Pietro Di Murrone was elected as a stop-gap measure.  Calling himself Celestine V, he was an unabashed disaster.  Finally, Cardinal Benedetto Gaetano told him that if he didn’t want to be Pope, he could resign.  Celestine V promptly did this, and Gaetano immediately stepped in to fill the vacuum, crowning himself Boniface VIII.  This created a schism, with half the people following Celestine V, half following Boniface VIII.  Boniface ended the problem by kidnapping Celestine and smothering him with a pillow. 

So like I said: once you’re Pope, you’re Pope for life.

It is curious to note, by the way, that Karol Wojtyla almost didn’t become Pope.  When Albino Luciani (aka John Paul I) died and the Conclave of Cardinals met to elect his successor, voting was pretty much split between Cardinals Giovanni Benelli and Giuseppi Siri.  Benelli came within 9 votes of the required 75%+1 votes needed to become Pope, but an obvious stalemate had arisen among the Cardinals, and Wojtyla was selected as a compromise to end the deadlock.

Whether there will be another deadlock when John Paul II finally dies is unknown, but at least some generalities about who the next Pope will be can be made.  John Paul II has effectively stacked the deck by appointing all but five of the Cardinals who will vote, so most certainly they will elect someone ultra-conservative.  Second, there is no chance that it will be one of the American Cardinals.  An American Cardinal would be viewed with immediate suspicion, the rest of the world doubtless suspecting that Wall Street had bought the throne, or maybe even the CIA.

Anyway, a few words about the current Pontiff.  I have mixed views about him, but mostly negative.  John Paul II has aggressively rejected the progressive reforms John XXIII tried to bring about with the Vatican II council, and his endorsement of Humana Vitae has helped set the Catholic Church back at least 1,000 years.  

I also find it interesting that every time some journalist starts to make inquiries into Wojtyla’s activities during World War II, said investigation is shut down faster than Chevy Chase’s talk show career.  A historical context check on my interest in this: Wojtyla had just entered the Krakow Seminary at the beginning of World War II, and of course World War II was officially started by the Germans blitzkrieging Poland.  In Rome, Pope Pius XII would remain suspiciously quiet on the matter of Hitler’s  National Socialism policies, and while he was officially neutral throughout the war, the evidence is pretty compelling that he was a rabid anti-Semite who secretly supported Der Führer until it was blatant which side was going to lose.  [Intrigued readers are referred to numerous books on the subject, including Hitler’s Pope, which is the only one to make the NYT Best Seller’s List.  Hell, I might have to do an Update piece on this sticky issue...]  Anyway, the “official” story of Wojtyla’s activities during German occupation smack of self-serving propaganda.  I’d be damned curious to read something unbiased on the subject... 

All that aside, however, I will say in his defense that he was instrumental in bringing about the downfall of Communism.  John Paul II’s secret support of the Polish Solidarity movement was the thin end of the wedge that allowed a lot of chinks in the Communist armor to be subsequently exploited by Reagan.  Although Reagan usually gets credit for “winning” the Cold War, I really don’t think he could have done it without the Pope’s help.  That itself is an impressive achievement, but of course the flip side is that it shows that the Vatican is actively meddling in world politics.

By the way, was I the only one who thought it interesting/suspicious that the American representative at the Pope’s Silver Jubilee was Jeb Bush?

 

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shade’s peshar

 

Stealth Shoveler works (well, slacks) at a financial publisher in Phoenix, so the above document is legit.  I even checked and found the filing on the SEC website.

Hmmmmm...  maybe there is more to this than I thought...