Benedict XVI Online Photo Album; Adopt a Cardinal!

"God is love." -- I John 4:8

A couple of quick notes (I don't want to stay up as late as I did last night!):

• I just stumbled upon a beautiful online photo album on the Vatican Web site of pictures and quotes from Benedict XVI's time as pope. His wonderful warmth and love really come through these images and words. Check it out at www.vatican.va/bxvi/omaggio/index_en.html. (Click on a corner of the photo album to turn the page.)
  
• Someone passed on a Web site that's encouraging people to adopt a specific cardinal who will be voting in the conclave and pray for that person from now until the new pope is elected. Just go to adoptacardinal.org, click on the "adopt" button, and fill in your name and email address. You will be sent the name of one of the cardinal electors to pray for. What a great way to support with our prayers the cardinal electors as they discern God's will for us!

Your life is not your own

"Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” -- John 21:18 (NAB)

When I listened to the beautiful message given by Pope Benedict in his final Wednesday general audience, one aspect in particular stood out for me.

In his full message, translated into English by the Vatican Radio staff and available on the Vatican Web site, he commented on the fact that the pope is no longer a private person, and that will continue to be true of him as he resigns. He said that he cannot go back to a private life of talks, conferences, etc. Instead, he will continue to serve the Church in prayer, staying at the foot of the Cross with our Crucified Lord.

I was struck by the fact that many would think that what he described as a "private life" of talks, conferences, etc., was actually a very public and active life, while the life of prayer to which he is retiring is the private life. But Pope Benedict seems to understand it differently.

A private life is one in which you are free to "go where you want," as Jesus said to the first pope, St. Peter. A public life, on the other hand, is one in which you "stretch out your hands" and let someone "lead you where you do not want to go."

How accurately Jesus' words described the life of not only St. Peter, but of St. Peter's successor, Pope Benedict XVI.

Passing the papal baton

When King David was old and advanced in years, though they covered him with blankets he could not get warm... -- I Kings 1:1 (NAB)

As I prayed about Pope Benedict's resignation in our Adoration Chapel, a situation recorded in Scripture came to mind. It's something that I blogged about last year when considering Elijah-Elisha pairs in Scripture, so I'll simply summarize it here.

King David's health had declined significantly, yet he had not yet passed the scepter to his son Solomon, the one who the Lord had made clear was to be his successor. David's failure to act almost resulted in a disaster as one of his other sons plotted to seize the throne. Although the parallel is not exact, it shows what can happen when a person who has been given authority by God holds onto that authority beyond the point at which he should pass it to another.

So is the Holy Spirit simply prompting Pope Benedict to pass the baton (or the papal crozier, as the case may be) now in order to avoid some future disaster? Only the Lord knows for sure. But as we consider the actions of the Pope in these days, it is something to keep in mind and prayer, especially as we pray for the next Pope and the Cardinal Electors who will select him.

St. Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church, pray for us!

"And the Lord said, "Who then is the faithful and wise steward, whom his master will set over his household..." -- Luke 12:42 (RSV)

There is a tradition of praying a 30-day novena to St. Joseph before his feast day on March 19. (To say "30-day novena" is a bit of a contradiction in terms since a novena is a nine-day period of prayer, but let's let that go for now. :-)) That 30-day period of prayer would go from today, Feb. 17, through March 18.

I read something this weekend suggesting that, in light of St. Joseph's role as Protector of the Holy Family and Patron of the Universal Church, it would be very timely to pray for the next 30 days for his special intercession for the election of the next pope. That strikes me as a brilliant idea. I'm planning to do it, and I encourage anyone who reads this to do it, too. Even if you see this post long after Feb. 17, just jump on and start praying. Prayer to our Lord through His saints is never wasted!

Almost any prayer or novena to St. Joseph can be adapted to this purpose. There is a traditional 30-day prayer to St. Joseph that you can find on the EWTN Web site. It's beautiful, but somewhat lengthy. A shorter prayer that could be used is the Memorare of St. Joseph:

Remember, O most chaste spouse of the Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who implored your help and sought your intercession was left unassisted.
Full of confidence in your power I fly unto you and beg your protection.
Despise not O Guardian of the Redeemer my humble supplication, but in your bounty, hear and answer me. Amen.

I'm also quite partial to the Litany of St. Joseph. It's lengthy, too, but it's a wonderful statement of his virtues and the place that the Lord has given him in the Church.

St. Joseph, Protector of the Holy Family and Patron of the Universal Church, pray for us and especially for the election of the next pope!

The Pope's resignation

"...though he was in the form of God, [Jesus] did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself..." -- Phil. 2:6-7a (NAB)

I suspect that for Catholics, at least, it will take on the character of other startling events, such as, Where were you when you heard about the Sept. 11 attack? Or for an older generation, where were you when you heard that Kennedy had been shot?

I was in my apartment last Monday morning, getting ready to leave for the 6:45 Mass when the radio announcer at 6 a.m. gave the breaking news: Pope Benedict XVI had resigned.

The first announcement I heard attributed the report to an Italian news agency, and I'll admit that my initial reaction was, That's pretty irresponsible of a major news station to report another rumor about the Pope as if it was true.

The next announcement a few minutes later, though, attributed the news to Vatican officials. I quickly got on my computer and went to a news site that I trust. It, too, was quoting a Vatican source. Pope Benedict had resigned.

Still not positive that it wasn't a rumor run wild, I didn't say anything to my fellow Mass attendees. By the time that I checked the Vatican Web site after Mass, though, the Pope's statement had been translated and posted in several languages. It was true. The Pope had resigned.

I'm glad that I read Pope Benedict's statement before hearing any of the commentary and analysis that filled the airwaves over the next few days. It didn't strike me as the abdication of a shepherd who, having been beaten down by all the crises, was abandoning his sheep to the wolves. Nor did I get the sense that he was now finally going to get around to the life of study and writing that he'd longed for since before his election. His own statement closed with the words, "With regard to myself, I wish to also devotedly serve the Holy Church of God in the future through a life dedicated to prayer."

The comment that I found most helpful was the statement of Bishop Earl Boyea, Bishop of Lansing. 

Pope Benedict has been and remains a very good father to the Catholic communion throughout the world.  He has been a wonderful teacher, shepherd, and man of prayer.  The clearest sign of his care for the Church is this most recent action: his decision to resign the papacy.  His sense that he can no longer be the effective missionary and evangelist has led him, in deep love, to hand this great task given him by Jesus Christ to another. ...

That is what stood out for me: humility and love. This incredibly gifted man, whom Scott Hahn has called the greatest Biblical scholar to serve as pope since Peter, has the humility to recognize that he no longer has the "strength of mind and body" to adequately fulfill his task. And because his great humility is coupled with great love for the Church, he is not trying to hold on to his position if it would be a detriment to the Church he so loves. And so, "having repeatedly examined my conscience before God," he is stepping down.

This is not to say that John Paul the Great was doing a disservice to the Church by staying on even as his health deteriorated. He, too, was doing what he felt the Lord Jesus wanted him to do. He was, among other things, making a statement that was completely in keeping with his life's message about the inherent dignity of the human person, regardless of how weak and frail that person may become.

But Benedict, in a way, is also making a statement that is completely in keeping with his character. The pope whose first encyclical was, to the surprise of many, on the topic of love, is now demonstrating that love in yet another way. 

Dear Pope Benedict, keep us in your prayers.

Inheriting the earth

"Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth." -- Matthew 5:5 (RSV)

A person who inherits something doesn't get it on his or her own efforts, by earning it in any way. Rather, when you inherit something, you get it by virtue of the relationship that you have, or had, with the deceased. Presumably, the relationship was special enough for you to warrant the deceased giving you something of value. In a way, the depth of the relationship is indicated by the value of that which the deceased gives you.

Again, we're seeing that a key characteristic of the meek is that they have a deep relationship with God, a relationship so deep that their inheritance is the entire earth! Some translations say that they will inherit "the land," which commentators interpret as meaning the greatest gift of all, the Promised Land, the Kingdom of Heaven! But it all hinges on that deep relationship with God, which roots the one beloved by Him and bears the fruit of meekness in all our dealings with others.