Because I'm bored, my mind is wandering. I'm sitting here thinking about who will be the next pope. It's an exercise in futility (in terms of predicting anything), but I'm going to write what I'm thinking as a way of preparing myself for what's to come. Maybe what I'm thinking will resonate with others, or maybe others will have their own ideas, but the point is that it's worth reflecting on if one is concerned about the Church and seeks to embrace whoever the Holy Spirit chooses. Below, I have broken things down by a few basic categories, moving from likely to improbable, yet possible, of course. Links are to John Allen's excellent coverage of this conclave.
The Realistic Choice... would be Cardinal Scola or Cardinal Oullet. Just slightly less realistic but one who still checks all the boxes is Cardinal Erdo.
The Geographically Creative, Yet Solid Choice... would be Cardinal Scherer or Cardinal O'Malley. I'm going to include Cardinal Turkson in this group as well.
The High Risk/High Reward, Energetic and Exciting Choice... would be Cardinal Dolan or Cardinal Tagle.
This is pretty much how I think it will be. While it could be Cardinal Bagnasco (whom I'd put at the end of group one above) or Cardinal Ravasi (whom I'd put in his own category, somewhere very near the last group in terms of being slightly unconventional), my gut says no. I'd be pretty surprised if our next pope isn't one of these guys, and several were in my Survivor: Sistine Chapel finale as well (I finished writing that series of posts much too long ago - within days of the pope's announcement, and my thoughts have changed considerably).
If today I had to rank just these men in terms of who I'd most like to see walk out on that balcony sometime next week, my rankings would stand this way:
10. Scherer - I would feel slightly disappointed, but "ok."
9. Ravasi - I would think, "hmm, interesting."
8. Turkson - I would think it kind of cool, and would hope for some African straight-talking.
7. O'Malley - I would be happy, as an American, and interested in getting to know him better.
6. Tagle - I would be fascinated by the choice and very curious to see it play out.
5. Bagnasco - I would feel very content.
4. Scola - Ditto.
3. Erdo - I would be content and intrigued.
2. Oullet - I would feel very content.
1. Dolan - I would be drenched in tears of joy and rinse off with beer brewed by Belgian monks.
*It goes without saying that Cardinals Burke, Ranjith, Canizares, and even Piacenza would be very high on my list if I thought they had much chance.
Newspaper Media “Corriere della Sera” asked to its journalists specialized in Vatican affair whom will the podium of favorites be composed of.
ReplyDeleteMost of them have indicated American Malley, together with german/brasilian Schrerer. What is your opinion of Malley? General opinion in italy is quite positive about this cardinal
http://www.corriere.it/esteri/speciali/2013/conclave/notizie/favoriti.shtml
To be honest, O'Malley keeps a pretty low profile in America. We were all familiar with him when he was first appointed Archbishop of Boston in order to replace Cardinal Law, who was one of the first to get caught in the child abuse cover-ups. O'Malley came in with the specific job of having to clean up the mess and has since been a leading figure in the charge to eradicate this behavior in the Church. I've actually learned a little bit more about him in the last few days, since his name is indeed being mentioned as papabile. I could sum up what I know about him as follows:
ReplyDelete1. He's faithful to the teachings of the Church
2. As a Franciscan, it's a given that he cares about the poor and lives a simple, prayerful life
3. He's a good manager of his diocese and has cleaned up the mess left in the wake of the child abuse scandal.
4. He is fluent in several languages, including English, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese (and maybe a couple others)
5. He is committed to the New Evangelization - He blogs, tweets, etc.
6. He is calm and reserved, but not shy. He is not boisterous, like Dolan, which sounds more acceptable to the European culture, from what I'm reading.
7. This may be the most important of all - He is likely a Cleveland Browns (American Football) fan since he grew up in Cleveland, OH - about an hour from our home in the United States!
The next Pope has to have the "X" factor, but not of course too much of it. If the cardinals pick one of the uninspiring front runners the world (including many Catholics) will just yawn and switch off, for a decade or more.
ReplyDeleteImho, those with just the right amount of "X" are, in decending order of age:
Rodriguez Maradiaga
Onaiyekan
Sarah
Braz de Aviz
Tagle
Just my 2c. Others may disagree...
I think there are 2-3 on that list that intrigue me. The more I read about and see of Tagle, the more I like him. I think he could bring a little JPII mixed with the theological gifts of Benedict. I also wonder if he is on the same track as Ratzinger was early in his career. More progressive early on and then a correction toward continuity with tradition. From what I've heard Tagle say, anyway, he's on board with Benedict's hermeneutic for understanding the Council. Once I heard him explain this, I was on board. I could see him bringing Catholics of various stripes closer together. I also believe this is true of Dolan, and I'm curious why you don't feel he has the "it" factor. ?
ReplyDeleteLooking again at your comment... Dolan may be one who has too much of the X factor, no?
ReplyDeleteCorrect, a back-slapping Irish-American (with a love for the bottle?) No thanks.
ReplyDeleteTurkson falls away too. He really seems to think this is "The X Factor" competition, not a choice of pope.
Nothing wrong with a back-slapper when it's authentic. And nothing wrong with enjoying one's choice of adult beverage. Benedict loves him some beer too, and I'm guessing many Italian popes drank them some vino... daily. We ain't Baptist! : )
ReplyDeleteMy identikit, when I started looking into it a month ago.
ReplyDeleteA strong, gentle, humble person who manifestly loves people, who talks to them as equals, from the heart, and listens. One who is open, and whose image says "you can trust me." Not an obvious "prince of the Church." A man comfortable in the humble garb of a priest, or even in civvies. Anyone who routinely wears a satin cape need not apply...
For political reasons, a non-Italian, and almost certainly a non-European. Either of these would, whatever the actual qualities of the person, send a message of "turning the clock back" or "business as usual." The choice must capture the world's imagination, as in October 1978. A man from the South?
A black man? Quite possibly, although the only wrinkle there, ironically, is that the Church would probably not want to be seen to be following fashion. So perhaps not, while Obama is still in office...
So the ideal would be Hispanic or Asian, with the latter perhaps just a leap too far at this present time.
Is there such a candidate? Yes, the only one, in fact.
Braz de Aviz
I think there are too many in the English-speaking world with not fond memories of their encounters with breezy, well-lubricated, conspiratorial Irish clerics, to view with equanimity the prospect of one of them becoming Pope!
ReplyDeleteThough I think we need to make sure not to insinuate that Cardinal Dolan is one of these guys, as he most certainly is not, I have sadly known a couple priests like this. It's interesting to me that both were progressive.
DeleteI should be fair... there are plenty of imperfect priest who are fully orthodox as well. It's just that the two drunks I know were open dissenters. I think dissent lends itself more easily to these sorts of problems.
DeleteSure, I don't know the guy, so can't comment, and may be doing him an injustice. There are a couple of unfortunate photos available on the Internet however, and the impression that he is cut from the cloth I desribed may be hard to shift.
DeleteEither way, he would make a good court jester, but I doubt a good pope.
You seem like the kind of guy who might read the NCReporter. Maybe I'm wrong. If so, I apologize, because I, for one, would be extremely insulted if anyone ever suggested that about me. That said, I suspect you are familiar with John Allen, who writes for the Reporter and is generally respected by most people no matter where they stand on Church issues. He thinks the world of Dolan and wrote an entire book to that effect. You should check it out, because your last comment is taking it too far. He is a Cardinal of the Catholic Church. Your opinions are welcome and I really enjoy the back and forth, but be respectful, brother, or I won't post comments like that again.
DeleteI'm sorry, I'm not trying to pick on this guy. But just being blunt.
DeleteI have looked at this rather cynically perhaps, with the following criteria.
"Would this man change anyone's opinion of the Catholic church, including Catholics', for the better?"
Truth be told, there are only a handful in the conclave who might, and none of the "front-runners".
Like it or not, we live in a media goldfish bowl, and image is important. We don't want (no names mentioned) a clown as pope, or someone who looks like Donald Duck, or a hamster, or a beardie-weirdie, etc.
Again just my 2c.
"Would this man change anyone's opinion of the Catholic church, including Catholics', for the better?"
DeleteI like that. Speaking personally. as someone who has an incredibly favorable view of the Catholic Church - and one who believes that Benedict might end up being the best pope I will have known in my lifetime - that is a high standard. I'm not naive. There is room for improvement, particularly in governance and better communication.
In adoration today, I felt a strong sense of calm come over me. I considered that the only thing better than my personal favorite walking out on that balcony would be God's personal favorite. That's something to be excited about, as we place our trust in Him completely. Whether it's Dolan, Ranjith, Tagle, or Braz de Aviz (covering quite a spectrum there) - we should be thrilled. It's not often in this life that we so clearly see God manifest His will to mankind. The papacy is a gift of the Lord to be cherished, and any true Vicar of Christ is worthy of our trust.
Thanks for the comments.
sorry the ignorance. what does it mean ' x factor'...?
ReplyDeletenamed after a British (later US and elsewhere) reality TV talent show. Probably inappropriate to make a direct analogy with the selection of pope.
ReplyDeleteBut, within the context of pope.
"Star-quality"?
Roncalli had it
Montini didn't
Luciani and Wojtyla definitely had it
Ratzinger, not really
Likeability? Charm? Charisma? Talent? "the X factor"...?
An X factor is a way of saying someone has that special something about them. You can't quite explain what it is, but they've just got IT. Charm, charisma, a dynamic personality...
ReplyDeletegot it. thanks. LOL
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