Yesterday, the Holy Father, Benedict XVI announced he would
renounce his claim to the See of Peter and retire for reasons of personal
health. This monumental action startled
not only the Catholic world, but also indeed the global community. It is the first time in almost six hundred
years that a Bishop of Rome relinquished their Papal See and retired. Pope
Benedict’s decision to acknowledge the personal limitations of his health and
as an octogenarian should be acclaimed as a monumental and most pragmatic event
for the life and vitality of the Catholic Church. The strain and activities of the papacy are most
certainly laborious for any one individual, especially a seasoned theologian
that has well passed the retirement age required for bishops, under the current
Code of Canon Law, promulgated by Pope John-Paul II.
Currently, the Code of Canon Law prescribes that prior to a
bishop’s 75th birthday; they should submit a letter of resignation
for consideration of the Holy Father.
While the Code requires the submission of a bishop’s letter of intent
and a declaration of their 75th anniversary, the Holy See has no
implicit or explicit responsibility to immediately accept or reject the
request. Pope Paul VI precipitated this practice of initiating the retirement
of bishops at 75 and members of the College of Cardinals at 80 in the waning
years of his lengthy pontificate.
The moto proprio of Paul VI, and the codification of these requirements in the revised Code of Canon Law are prophetic and insightful contingencies, built into the government of the Catholic Church intended not to discriminate against elderly bishops and cardinals of the Church. Quite the contrary, the
inclusion of these directives into the revised Code Law is not intended to
discriminate against the elderly members of the Colleges of Bishops and
Cardinals, but rather intends to protect their personal vitality and ensure the
effective continuity of the Church’s government with as little interruption as
possible. Prior to these directives, Bishops and Cardinals served in their
official capacities until they either died or were incapacitated by issues of
health that prohibited their active ministries.
The provision to retire for bishops and cardinals is a modern innovation
since 1974, and it has worked well and created a new category of bishops, Bishops
Emeriti, namely retired bishops and cardinals that continue in their
capacity to administer Sacraments, but are without administrative duties. They retain their titles and all of the
honorifics accorded to their ecclesial rank, and provide great counsel and
assistance to their successors.
Perhaps now it is most appropriate to bestow the title of
Pope Emeritus on Benedict XVI, retain the formal address of Your Holiness and
permit him to continue to wear the traditional white cassock of a Pope.
Typically, this protocol is established with former United States Presidents,
they are still addressed as Mr. President and are provided with official staff
and administrative support. In our
American Republic, no one mistakes them for the duly elected current President
of the United States, they are indeed a vast resource of knowledge, experience,
and perceptive that is invaluable to the new President if their counsel is
requested.
In the case of Benedict XVI, no one would even consider his
continued use of the title, Your Holiness would diminish any authority from his
elected successor, and it would lend a modern appreciation to the manner in
which papal transitions are made. In some manner, it is comforting to have a
Pope Emeritus, not as someone standing in the wings to usurp papal power,
rather as a paternal and guiding influence for the counsel of the newly elected
Pope. Historically, elected popes have no one to offer counsel and confide in
another individual that has previously held the esteemed office of Bishop of
Rome. Benedict’s retirement should be viewed as not only a historic event, but
also a great opportunity to evolve the perceptions of the Papacy as not just an
office headed by a terminal Pope, but a viable living office and role that
requires the vitality and physical abilities of a man with a global message and
mission. Remarkably, this resignation
announced by Benedict XVI provides a transformational perspective on the great
role and responsibility of the Pope in the modern world. Most significantly, it
accentuates the teachings of the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council that
accentuate embracing the modern world and all of its innovations to spread the
Gospel message. Joseph Ratzinger, an
architect of the Second Vatican Council
regardless of his health issues, may well indeed illustrate an sublime
architectural component of his vision for the changes of the Second Vatican
Council, as Father Ratzinger that he is only now revealing and disclosing
through his papacy and pending retirement.
My suggestion is not that the Holy Father is implementing a
preconceived idea from fifty years ago.
However, the possibility remains that the work of the Holy Spirit is
still in progress, because of the great Ecumenical Council, which celebrates
its 50th anniversary of the Council’s start in 1962. The evolution of the papacy since John XXIII indeed has grown to a responsibility of global significance and great political and social influence. The New Evangelization called for by Pope Benedict XVI could quite possibly include an evolution of the role of the papacy into an international diplomat of global proportions that leads the world’s moral and ethical view through positive integration of the Church as a major influence on the geopolitical stage of a world that is no longer isolated but integrated through technological innovations of communications and science.
The New Evangelization of Benedict XVI is in reality a call
for the Catholic Church’s transformation into a universal voice for all peoples
that seeks global harmony through the message of tolerance, peace, and
diversity of all peoples and cultures.
Pope Benedict XVI, through his retirement is embracing the need for the
Church to saturate itself in the modern world as defined in Gaudium et Spes,
which realizes the Catholic Church as an emerging global influence on human
moral and ethical developments radically changed through the development and
introduction of the advances of the sciences and multiple technologies. Pope Benedict XVI a few weeks ago became to
first pontiff in history to use Twitter as a pastoral resource. Perhaps, that “tweet” was the electronic
flame of the new evangelization initiated by Pope Benedict to restore the
global society with a component of morality and ethics and the acceptance of
Divine Providence as part of our human and eschatological existence.
Benedict XVI’s retirement and transition to Papa Emeritus
should be considered as a monumental development in the role of the papacy and
the Church in the activities of the post-modern world and is indicative of the
dramatic call for aggiornamento proclaimed 50 years ago by the Fathers
of the Second Vatican Council, and Joseph Ratzinger as one of its principle
architects.
His retirement is well deserved and earned after decades of
faithful service to the message of the Gospel. It should also be considered as
an opportunity to revitalize all peoples from secular humanism and the
limitations of materialism to a new exploration of faith through whatever
manner the Almighty manifests Himself to the peoples of the world.
Χαίρετε ἐν κυρίῳ πάντοτε!
Gaudete
in Domino semper!
No comments:
Post a Comment