The Pope
Well, I was going to write about something else, but I decided to say a few things about the Pope in light of his worsening condition (as I type this, their are reports of him having suffered heart failure and currently being in "very serious" condition).
Amazingly, there's been only one pope in my lifetime (same goes for most readers of this). He's the third-longest serving pope in history; tradition saying that the Apostle Peter served longest (estimates of 34-37 years; though some debate this, which I won't get into here), and Pius IX served for over 31 years beginning in 1846. There have been only a baker's dozen of popes who have served twnety years or more (five of them since the American Revolution, all five being among the seven longest-serving). John Paul II was elected to the papacy on October 16, 1978, so about 26.5 years of being pope. The previous pope, John Paul I, served a mere 33 days (August 26 -- September 28, 1978; the twelfth-shortest reign if Stephen II (3 days) is counted). You'll note the gap between the death of John Paul I and the election of John Paul II -- so don't be expecting the naming of the new pope immediately.
John Paul II was the first non-Italian pope in 455 years (he's Polish). It looks like the Italian stranglehold on the papacy has been broken -- there is much speculation that the next pope could be the first non-European in modern times (St. Peter, of course, was not European, and there have been three African popes: Victor I (186/9-197/201), Miltiades (310/1-314), and Gelasius I (492-496)). For those curious, it is quite unlikely that an American will be the next pope.
In choosing the next pope, all cardinals under the age of 80 have a vote (should the AARP protest the Catholic Church and its ageism?). While theoretically any male Catholic could be voted pope, the last non-cardinal to be elected was Urban VI (1378-1389, and his papacy was a huge mess), so it seems safe to assume the cardinals will elect one of their own. The cardinals meet in the Sistene Chapel to vote by ballot; a two-thirds majority is needed (or a simple majority after a deadlock of twelve days). If no pope is chosen, the ballots are burned with a chemical agent, causing black smoke to emerge from the chimney. If a pope is chosen, then the ballots are burned on their own, causing white smoke to emerge. The Dean of the College of Cardinals then asks the newly-elected if he freely accepts his election; after accepting, he is asked which name he will go by (for nearly 1500 years, popes have traditionally gone by names other than their birth names -- that's why we've had a Pope John XXIII but not a Pope Guido XXIII; they like to choose names to honor various persons, too, so a name can tell you something about which pope the new pope looks up to).
Oh, and if the "Prophecy of the Popes" is to be believed, only two popes remain after the current one. Just thought I'd toss in a bit of lore.
Karol Józef Wojtyła -- peace be with you.
Amazingly, there's been only one pope in my lifetime (same goes for most readers of this). He's the third-longest serving pope in history; tradition saying that the Apostle Peter served longest (estimates of 34-37 years; though some debate this, which I won't get into here), and Pius IX served for over 31 years beginning in 1846. There have been only a baker's dozen of popes who have served twnety years or more (five of them since the American Revolution, all five being among the seven longest-serving). John Paul II was elected to the papacy on October 16, 1978, so about 26.5 years of being pope. The previous pope, John Paul I, served a mere 33 days (August 26 -- September 28, 1978; the twelfth-shortest reign if Stephen II (3 days) is counted). You'll note the gap between the death of John Paul I and the election of John Paul II -- so don't be expecting the naming of the new pope immediately.
John Paul II was the first non-Italian pope in 455 years (he's Polish). It looks like the Italian stranglehold on the papacy has been broken -- there is much speculation that the next pope could be the first non-European in modern times (St. Peter, of course, was not European, and there have been three African popes: Victor I (186/9-197/201), Miltiades (310/1-314), and Gelasius I (492-496)). For those curious, it is quite unlikely that an American will be the next pope.
In choosing the next pope, all cardinals under the age of 80 have a vote (should the AARP protest the Catholic Church and its ageism?). While theoretically any male Catholic could be voted pope, the last non-cardinal to be elected was Urban VI (1378-1389, and his papacy was a huge mess), so it seems safe to assume the cardinals will elect one of their own. The cardinals meet in the Sistene Chapel to vote by ballot; a two-thirds majority is needed (or a simple majority after a deadlock of twelve days). If no pope is chosen, the ballots are burned with a chemical agent, causing black smoke to emerge from the chimney. If a pope is chosen, then the ballots are burned on their own, causing white smoke to emerge. The Dean of the College of Cardinals then asks the newly-elected if he freely accepts his election; after accepting, he is asked which name he will go by (for nearly 1500 years, popes have traditionally gone by names other than their birth names -- that's why we've had a Pope John XXIII but not a Pope Guido XXIII; they like to choose names to honor various persons, too, so a name can tell you something about which pope the new pope looks up to).
Oh, and if the "Prophecy of the Popes" is to be believed, only two popes remain after the current one. Just thought I'd toss in a bit of lore.
Karol Józef Wojtyła -- peace be with you.
posted by DC | 3:58 AM
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