Pope Benedict XVI - Diocese of Austin

March 2013
BENEDICT XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Supreme Pontiff
April 19, 2005 – February 28, 2013
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BENEDICT XVI
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C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
Benedict XVI Resignation Declaration
Feb. 11, 2013
Dear Brothers,
I have convoked you to this Consistory, not only for the three canonizations, but also to communicate to you a decision of
great importance for the life of the Church. After having repeatedly examined my conscience before God, I have come
to the certainty that my strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine
ministry. I am well aware that this ministry, due to its essential spiritual nature, must be carried out not only with words and
deeds, but no less with prayer and suffering. However, in today’s world, subject to so many rapid changes and shaken
by questions of deep relevance for the life of faith, in order to govern the barque of Saint Peter and proclaim the Gospel, both strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the last few months, has deteriorated in me to the
extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulll the ministry entrusted to me. For this reason, and
well aware of the seriousness of this act, with full freedom I declare that I renounce the ministry of Bishop of Rome, Successor of Saint Peter, entrusted to me by the Cardinals on 19 April 2005, in such a way, that as from 28 February 2013, at
20:00 hours, the See of Rome, the See of Saint Peter, will be vacant and a Conclave to elect the new Supreme Pontiff will
have to be convoked by those whose competence it is.
Dear Brothers, I thank you most sincerely for all the love and work with which you have supported me in my ministry and I
ask pardon for all my defects. And now, let us entrust the Holy Church to the care of Our Supreme Pastor, Our Lord Jesus
Christ, and implore his holy Mother Mary, so that she may assist the Cardinal Fathers with her maternal solicitude, in electing a new Supreme Pontiff. With regard to myself, I wish to also devotedly serve the Holy Church of God in the future
through a life dedicated to prayer.
Benedict XVI
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Queridísimos hermanos,
Os he convocado a este Consistorio, no sólo para las tres causas de canonización, sino también para comunicaros una
decisión de gran importancia para la vida de la Iglesia. Después de haber examinado ante Dios reiteradamente mi
conciencia, he llegado a la certeza de que, por la edad avanzada, ya no tengo fuerzas para ejercer adecuadamente
el ministerio petrino. Soy muy consciente de que este ministerio, por su naturaleza espiritual, debe ser llevado a cabo no
únicamente con obras y palabras, sino también y en no menor grado sufriendo y rezando. Sin embargo, en el mundo de
hoy, sujeto a rápidas transformaciones y sacudido por cuestiones de gran relieve para la vida de la fe, para gobernar
la barca de san Pedro y anunciar el Evangelio, es necesario también el vigor tanto del cuerpo como del espíritu, vigor
que, en los últimos meses, ha disminuido en mí de tal forma que he de reconocer mi incapacidad para ejercer bien el
ministerio que me fue encomendado. Por esto, siendo muy consciente de la seriedad de este acto, con plena libertad,
declaro que renuncio al ministerio de Obispo de Roma, Sucesor de San Pedro, que me fue conado por medio de los
Cardenales el 19 de abril de 2005, de forma que, desde el 28 de febrero de 2013, a las 20.00 horas, la sede de
Roma, la sede de San Pedro, quedará vacante y deberá ser convocado, por medio de quien tiene competencias, el cónclave para la elección del nuevo Sumo Pontíce.
Queridísimos hermanos, os doy las gracias de corazón por todo el amor y el trabajo con que habéis llevado junto a mí
el peso de mi ministerio, y pido perdón por todos mis defectos. Ahora, conamos la Iglesia al cuidado de su Sumo Pastor,
Nuestro Señor Jesucristo, y suplicamos a María, su Santa Madre, que asista con su materna bondad a los Padres Cardenales al elegir el nuevo Sumo Pontíce. Por lo que a mi respecta, también en el futuro, quisiera servir de todo corazón a
la Santa Iglesia de Dios con una vida dedicada a la plegaria.
Benedict XVI
March 2013
BENEDICT XVI
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Pope Benedict’s ponticate marked by
teaching, call to return to faith
BY JOHN THAVIS AND FRANCIS X. ROCCA
CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
During his almost eight-year ponticate, Pope
Benedict XVI impressed the world as a teacher, guiding Catholics to the sources of the faith and urging
modern society not to turn its back on God.
Citing his age and diminishing energy, the
85-year-old pope resigned effective Feb. 28 and now
will devote the rest of his life to prayer.
As pastor of the universal church, he used virtually every medium at his disposal –– books and
Twitter, sermons and encyclicals –– to catechize the
faithful on the foundational beliefs and practices of
Christianity, ranging from the sermons of St. Augustine to the sign of the cross.
Having served in his 30s as an inuential adviser
during the 1962-65 Second Vatican Council, he made
it a priority as pope to correct what he saw as overly
expansive interpretations of Vatican II in favor of
readings that stressed the council’s continuity with
the church’s millennial traditions.
Under his oversight, the Vatican continued to
highlight the church’s moral boundaries on issues
such as end-of-life medical care, marriage and homosexuality. But the pope’s message to society at large
focused less on single issues and more on the risk of
losing the basic relationship between the human being and the Creator.
The German-born pontiff did not try to match
the popularity of his predecessor, Pope John Paul
II, but the millions of people who came to see him
in Rome and abroad came to appreciate his smile,
his frequent ad libs and his ability to speak from the
heart.
Although he did not expect to travel much, he
ended up making 24 trips to six continents and three
times presided over World Youth Day mega-gatherings, in Germany in 2005, in Australia in 2008, and in
Spain in 2011.
Talking about aging last March when he met the
85-year-old Cuban leader Fidel Castro in Havana,
Pope Benedict told him, “Yes, I’m old, but I can still
carry out my duties.”
On a historic visit to the U.S. in 2008, the pope
brought his own identity into clearer focus for
Americans. He set forth a moral challenge on issues
ranging from economic justice to abortion. He also
took church recognition of the priestly sex abuse
scandal to a new level, expressing his personal shame
at what happened and praying with the victims.
The pope met three times with former U.S.
President George W. Bush, including a formal visit
to the White House. When President Barack Obama
was elected, the pontiff sent him a warmly worded
telegram and a promise of his prayers, but when they
met at the Vatican the next year, the pope spoke
clearly about the church’s objections to the administration’s policies on issues such as abortion and
embryonic stem cell research.
The path to papacy
Pope Benedict was 78 and in apparent good
health when elected April 19, 2005, but was said to
have told his fellow cardinals that his would not be a
long papacy like that of his predecessor. In an interview with the German author Peter Seewald in 2010,
Pope Benedict said: “If a pope clearly realizes that he
is no longer physically, psychologically and spiritually
capable of handling the duties of his ofce, then he
has a right and, under some circumstances, also an
obligation to resign.”
As inevitable as his election seemed after Blessed
John Paul died in 2005, his path to the papacy was
long and indirect.
Joseph Ratzinger was born April 16,
1927, in the Bavarian town of Marktl
am Inn, the third and youngest child
of a police ofcer, Joseph Sr., and his
wife, Maria. Young Joseph joined his
brother, Georg, at a minor seminary in
1939.
Like other young students, he was
automatically enrolled in the Hitler
Youth program, but soon stopped
going to meetings. During World War
II, he was conscripted into the army,
and in the spring of 1945 he deserted
his unit and returned home, spending
a few months in an Allied prisoner-ofwar camp. He returned to the seminary
late in 1945 and was ordained six years
later, along with his brother.
In a meeting with young people
in 2006, the pope said witnessing the
brutality of the Nazi regime helped
convince him to become a priest. But
he also had to overcome some doubts,
he said. For one thing, he asked himself
whether he “could faithfully live celibacy” his entire life. He also recognized
that his real leanings were toward theology and wondered whether he had the
qualities of a good pastor and the ability
“to be simple with the simple people.”
After a short stint as a parish priest,
the future pope began a teaching career
and built a reputation as one of the
church’s foremost theologians. At Vatican II, he made important contributions
POPE BENEDICT XVI began his papacy on April 19, 2005,
as a theological expert and embraced
at the age of 78. (CNS photo from L’Osservatore Romano)
the council’s early work. But he began
years as the Vatican’s chief doctrinal ofcial, Pope
to have misgivings about an emerging
Benedict emphasized that Christianity was a religion
anti-Roman bias, the idea of a “church from below”
of love and not a religion of rules.
run on a parliamentary model, and the direction of
During the 2010-11 Year for Priests, Pope Benedict
theological research in the church –– criticism that
held up the 19th-century French St. John Vianney as
would become even sharper in later years.
a model of clerical holiness who struggled against the
In a 2005 speech that served as a kind of maniindifference and hostility of a militantly secular society.
festo for his young papacy, Pope Benedict rejected
He convened a Synod of Bishops on Scripture
what he called a “hermeneutic of discontinuity and
in 2008, in an effort to move the Bible back to the
rupture” in interpreting Vatican II as a radical break
center of individual spirituality and pastoral planning.
with the past. The pope called instead for reading
He opened a Year of Faith in October presided over a
the council through a “hermeneutic of reform” in
synod focusing on the new evangelization and a revival
continuity with Catholic tradition.
of Christian faith in the secular West, one of the prioriIn 1977, Pope Paul VI named him archbishop of
ties of his ponticate.
Munich and Freising, and four years later Pope John
Some of Pope Benedict’s most memorable statePaul called him to head the Congregation for the Docments came when he applied simple Gospel values to
trine of the Faith, where he wielded great inuence on
social issues such as the protection of human life, the
issues such as liberation theology, dissent from church
environment and economics.
teachings and pressure for women’s ordination. ServWhen the global nancial crisis worsened in 2008,
ing in this role for nearly a quarter century, then-Cardinal Ratzinger earned a reputation in some quarters as a for example, the pope insisted that nancial institutions must put people before prots. He also remindsort of grand inquisitor, seeking to stamp out indeed people that modern ideals of money and material
pendent thinking, an image belied by his passion for
success are passing realities, saying: “Whoever builds
debate with thinkers inside and outside the church.
his life on these things –– on material things, on success, on appearances –– is building on sand.”
As the newly elected pope in 2005, he explained
Pope Benedict’s outreach to traditionalist Cathothat he took the name Benedict to evoke the memory lics brought him some opposition and criticism. In
of Pope Benedict XV, a “courageous prophet of
2007, he widened the possible use of the Tridentine
peace” during World War I, and said he wanted to
Mass and began introducing touches of antiquity in
place his ministry at the service of reconciliation and
his own liturgies, including the requirement of kneelharmony among peoples.
ing when receiving Communion from the pope.
The new pope spent most of his energy writing
Then in 2009, in an effort to reconcile with the
and preaching, in encyclicals, letters, messages, homitraditionalist Society of St. Pius X, he lifted the exlies and talks that eventually numbered more than a
communications of four of the society’s bishops who
thousand.
were ordained illicitly in 1988.
Surprising those who had expected a by-the-book
ponticate from a man who had spent more than 23
Continued on next page
The Papacy
BENEDICT XVI
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POPE BENEDICT XVI looks on after delivering his Christmas message from the central
balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican
on Dec. 25, 2012. (CNS photo by Paul Haring)
A storm of criticism erupted because one of
the four, Bishop Richard Williamson, had made a
number of statements –– widely available on the
Internet, but unknown to the pope –– denying the
extent of the Holocaust. The Vatican scrambled to
distance Pope Benedict from the bishop’s views and
reafrm the pontiff’s commitment to Catholic-Jewish
dialogue.
The pope himself wrote an unusually personal
letter to the world’s bishops, defending his efforts
to restore church unity by reaching out to traditionalists and expressing sadness that even some Catholics seemed ready to attack him “with open hostility.”
At the same time, he clearly acknowledged mistakes in Vatican communications and said the Holy
See would have to do a better job using the Internet
in the future. Instead, the mishaps continued, and for
most of the year preceding Pope Benedict’s resignation, press coverage of the Vatican was dominated
by the so-called “VatiLeaks” affair, a scandal over
condential and sometimes embarrassing condential documents that had been provided to the press,
allegedly by the pope’s own butler, Paolo Gabriele.
A Vatican court found Gabriele guilty in October and sentenced him to 18 months in jail. Pope
Benedict, meeting his former aide outside his cell in
the Vatican police barracks, pardoned him just before
Christmas.
The pope’s 2009 letter to bishops also summarized what he saw as his main mission as the successor of Peter: “In our days, when in vast areas of the
world the faith is in danger of dying out like a ame
which no longer has fuel, the overriding priority is
to make God present in this world and to show men
and women the way to God.”
The idea that God is disappearing from the human horizon and that humanity is losing its bearings with “evident destructive effects” was a theme
Pope Benedict saw as common ground for dialogue
between Christians and Muslims. He voiced the
church’s opposition to a potential “clash of civilizations” in which religion was seen as a dening
difference. But sometimes his words drew as much
criticism as praise, particularly among Muslims who
felt the pope was unfairly questioning the foundations of their religion.
In a lecture at Germany’s University of Regensburg in 2006, the pope quoted a Christian medieval
emperor who said the prophet Mohammed had
brought “things only evil and inhuman, such as
his command to spread by the sword the faith he
preached.” Following protests in the Islamic world,
which included the burning of churches in the Palestinian territories and the murder of a nun in Somalia,
the pope said he was sorry his words had offended
Muslims and distanced himself from the text he had
quoted.
Later that year, visiting a mosque in Turkey, he
turned toward Mecca and prayed silently alongside
his host. This interfaith gesture generated considerable good will, and over the succeeding years, Pope
Benedict continued to meet with Muslim leaders.
Yet some Muslims continued to view the pope with
suspicion or hostility, such as the prominent cleric
who reiterated complaints about the Regensburg
speech in the run-up to the pope’s trip to Lebanon in
September.
Pope Benedict also visited synagogues, in Germany in 2005, in New York in 2008 and in Rome in
2010, and his strong condemnations of anti-Semitism
won the appreciation of many Jewish leaders. However, tensions arose in 2008 over the wording of a
prayer for Jewish conversion, which the pope had
revised for use in the Tridentine-rite Good Friday
liturgy.
The pope considered Christian unity one of his
priorities, and he took steps to improve dialogue with
Orthodox churches in particular. The most visible
sign was the pope’s decision to accept the invitation
of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople to visit the patriarch at his headquarters in
Istanbul, Turkey, in 2006. Two years later, the pope
invited the patriarch to give a major address at the
Synod of Bishops. The Vatican also arranged the
resumption of theological talks with the Orthodox in
mid-2006 and began new forms of cultural collaboration with the Russian Orthodox Church.
The fate of Christian minorities around the world
was one of the pope’s major concerns, especially in
places like Iraq and other predominantly Muslim
countries. The pope strongly defended the right to
religious freedom in his speech to the United Nations
in 2008.
In early 2007, the pope turned his attention to
China, convening a meeting of church experts to
discuss ways to bring unity to the church and gain
concessions from the communist government. A
papal letter to Chinese Catholics a few months
later encouraged bold new steps to bridge the gap
between Catholics registered with the governmentcontrolled Catholic Patriotic Association and the socalled underground communities, whose leaders were
frequently harassed or imprisoned by the authorities.
The pope’s letter also issued a broad invitation
to government authorities for dialogue on the appointment of bishops and other topics. A number of
bishops were subsequently ordained with both papal
and government approval, before the government
returned to the practice of choosing bishops without
the Vatican’s approval.
One of the most important documents issued
under Pope Benedict, and with his explicit approval,
was a doctrinal congregation instruction on bioethics
in 2008. The document warned that some developments in stem-cell research, gene therapy and
embryonic experimentation violate moral principles
and reect an attempt by man to “take the place of
his Creator.”
The pope’s own writings frequently explored the
relationship between personal faith in Christ and
social consequences.
His legacy of writings, saints
His rst encyclical, “Deus Caritas Est” (“God
Is Love,”), issued in 2005, reminded all people
that God loves them and called on them to share
that love in a personal and social way. It won high
praise, even from quarters typically critical of the
church.
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
Two years later, his second encyclical, “Spe
Salvi” (on Christian hope), warned that without
faith in God, humanity lies at the mercy of ideologies that can lead to “the greatest forms of cruelty
and violations of justice.”
His third encyclical, “Caritas in Veritate”
(“Charity in Truth”) was released in 2009 and said
ethical values are needed to overcome the current
global economic crisis as well as to eradicate hunger and promote the real development of all the
world’s peoples.
Several months ago, the Vatican said Pope
Benedict had completed work on another encyclical, this one on the virtue of faith, and its publication was expected in the rst half of this year.
The Vatican has not said whether or not the letter
would come out before the pope’s resignation
takes effect Feb. 28.
His three-volume work, “Jesus of Nazareth,”
published between 2007 and 2012 in several
languages, emphasized that Christ must be understood as the Son of God on a divine mission, not
as a mere moralist or social reformer. The books
argued that while Christ did not bring a blueprint
for social progress, he did bring a new vision based
on love that challenges the evils of today’s world
–– from the brutality of totalitarian regimes to the
“cruelty of capitalism.”
In a few areas, Pope Benedict asked church
experts to engage in careful study and reection:
–– He asked Vatican agencies to consider the
moral and scientic aspects of condom use in
AIDS prevention, after some theologians argued
that condoms were acceptable for married couples
in which one spouse is infected with HIV. At the
same time, his own statement in 2009 that condom-distribution campaigns aggravate the problem
of AIDS prompted widespread criticism.
In his 2010 interview for the book “Light of
the World,” Seewald asked Pope Benedict about
the use of condoms in AIDS prevention and the
pope’s answer made headlines around the world.
While continuing to insist that condoms were not
the answer to the AIDS pandemic, he allowed
that in particular circumstances –– for example, a
prostitute seeking to reduce the risk of infection
–– using a condom might represent a step toward
moral awareness.
–– He convened scientic and theological
scholars for private discussions about the theory
of evolution. In his own remarks on the subject,
he emphasized that the acceptance of evolutionary
theory should not mean the exclusion of a fundamental divine purpose in creation.
One of the pope’s most notable actions came
in May 2006, when he approved a decision saying
that Father Marcial Maciel Degollado, the founder
of the Legionaries of Christ, should not exercise
his priestly ministry publicly. Father Maciel, who
enjoyed favor for many years at the Vatican, had
been accused of sexually abusing minors. In 2009
the pope approved an apostolic visitation of the
late priest’s order.
Although he was expected to reverse a trend
set by Pope John Paul, Pope Benedict did not slow
the Vatican’s saint-making machinery, but he did
immediately announce he would not preside over
beatications. The pope’s decision was meant to
highlight the difference between a beatication
and a canonization, but, in effect, the pope’s decision lowered the prole of beatication liturgies.
Pope Benedict did make two exceptions to his
new rule: the rst to beatify Cardinal John Henry
Newman during a September 2010 visit to England; and the second to beatify Pope John Paul in
May 2011.
While Pope Benedict asked Vatican experts to
be more selective in picking candidates for sainthood, he ended up canonizing 44 new saints,
including the Native American Kateri Tekakwitha
and Mother Marianne Cope of Molokai.
March 2013
BENEDICT XVI
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Bishop Vásquez reects on Pope Benedict XVI
Editor: Bishop were you as surprised as most
of the rest of us were to hear that Pope Benedict
XVI was resigning?
Bishop Vásquez: Indeed, I was stunned. The
resignation of Benedict XVI is historic; it is something that has not been done in the papacy in several
hundreds of years. I certainly did not anticipate that
he was going to retire, so the news that came on Feb.
11 came as quite a shock.
At the same time, I have to say that this is a
courageous move on the Holy Father’s part. He is
almost 86 years old and has come to realize that his
health no longer allows him to carry out his duties
as the successor of Peter and the chief shepherd of
the Catholic Church. He is a holy man and I am sure
he has thought about and prayed about this decision
a great deal, and he has concluded that his resignation is for the good of the church. He has done this
simply out of what is best for the people of God and
for all the church.
Besides courage, the Holy Father has demonstrated a great deal of humility to know and understand
his limitations. Anyone who has met Benedict XVI
comes away impressed by his humility. Our Holy
Father has been a shepherd who is very much aware
of the needs of the times in our world. Particularly he
has expressed his concerns about a growing secularism that wishes to exclude God from our society.
This is why he called for the Year of Faith as a way
for all Catholics to renew and deepen their love
of Christ and his church. This is also why he has
strongly promoted the new evangelization, which has
led him to embrace the latest technology and social
media in order to communicate the message of the
Gospel.
Editor: At the end of 2012, you visited Rome
for a meeting and met with the Holy Father.
What was his health like then?
Bishop Vásquez: In December, I was in Rome
and saw him a couple of times. During a Wednesday
papal audience, I greeted him and had the oppor-
BISHOP JOE
VÁSQUEZ and several other bishops
from Texas met with
Pope Benedict XVI on
March 15, 2012. Bishop
Vásquez says Benedict
XVI will be remembered
as a “brilliant scholar and
theologian” and a “man
of profound faith.” (Photo
from L’Osservatore
Romano)
tunity to express the Diocese of Austin’s love and
support for him. He was cordial, amicable and very
much engaged. He listened intently to everyone who
greeted him. At the time, I remember thinking to myself for a man of his age he is doing extremely well.
Undoubtedly, it takes a lot of energy and stamina to
minister and shepherd more than a billion Catholics
in all corners of the world.
Editor: So after Feb. 28, he will lead a life of
prayer, correct?
Bishop Vásquez: My understanding is that as of
Feb. 28, he left the See of Peter and distanced himself
from Rome. He is now at the papal summer residence
at Castel Gondolfo, where he is no doubt praying
for the church, and especially for the cardinals in the
conclave who will be electing the new pope.
Though he will be physically apart from the
conclave, he will denitely be there in spirit and in
communion with them as he prays that God will
choose the right man to lead our church. And with
the guidance of the Holy Spirit a new pope will be
elected soon. Christ himself made a commitment
that he would never abandon the church and that he
would be with us until the end of time. Therefore, we
have condence and trust that the Holy Spirit, who
energizes the entire church, will once again guide the
cardinals to choose a successor to Peter.
Editor: Personally, what are your fondest
memories of Pope Benedict XVI?
Bishop Vásquez: Nearly three years ago, Pope
Benedict named me to be the fth bishop of this
diocese, which has been a great blessing to me. I am
grateful to serve in this local church, which is growing and vibrant!
I am quite fond of the Holy Father and the
times I have met him and been with him have been
wonderful opportunities for me to see a very humble
man who obviously has great responsibility. Yet he
also has great compassion and love for those whom
he shepherds. He has expended himself and given
of himself completely to the church. I see him as a
father in many ways, as well as a brilliant scholar and
theologian; and above all, he is a man of profound
faith.
In hindsight, maybe resignation is not so surpising
BY FRANCIS X. ROCCA
CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
As much as he astonished the world when he
announced his resignation Feb. 11, Pope Benedict
XVI’s decision seems almost predictable in hindsight.
Given his previous statements on the subject and
his recent signs of aging, one might say that people
should have seen it coming.
The real mystery now is not why Pope Benedict
chose to step down, it is how this almost-unprecedented action will affect the papacy and the church.
In 2010, Pope Benedict told the German journalist Peter Seewald that “if a pope clearly realizes that
he is no longer physically, psychologically, and spiritually capable of handling the duties of ofce, then
he has a right and, under some circumstances, also an
obligation to resign.”
The signs of fatigue and difculty walking that
have struck most papal observers in recent months
led him to conclude, as he told an assembly of cardinals two days before Ash Wednesday, that “strength
of mind and body ... has deteriorated in me to the
extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to
adequately fulll the ministry entrusted to me.”
Many people today associate unexpected resignations with scandal or crisis. In the immediate after-
math of Pope Benedict’s announcement there was
predictable speculation that he might be stepping
down under pressure of some grave problem in the
church, perhaps one yet to be revealed.
But if Pope Benedict declined to resign at the
height of the controversy over clerical sex abuse
in late winter and early spring of 2010, when some
accused him of personally mishandling cases of pedophile priests in Germany and the U.S., it is hard to
imagine what sort of crisis he might deem disturbing
enough to resign over now.
As he told Seewald later that same year: “When
the danger is great one must not run away. For
that reason, now is certainly not the time to resign.
Precisely at a time like this one must stand fast and
endure the difcult situation. That is my view. One
can resign at a peaceful moment or when one simply
cannot go on. But one must not run away from danger and say that someone else should do it.”
Pope Benedict may have judged the eve of Lent
a particularly good moment to announce his resignation since, as the Vatican spokesman, Jesuit Father
Federico Lombardi, told reporters at a brieng
shortly afterward, the timing practically ensures that
the church will have a new pope by Easter.
It is probably no coincidence, and certainly tting, that Pope Benedict waited to resign until after
he had observed the 50th anniversary of the open-
ing of Second Vatican Council, last October. If his
papacy has had a single unifying project, it has been
his effort to correct interpretations of Vatican II as a
radical break with the past, in favor of readings that
stress the continuity of the council’s teachings with
the church’s millennial traditions.
Now, Pope Benedict has made his own dramatic
innovation in church tradition. Of the several men,
perhaps as many as 10, who have resigned the papacy
in the history of the ofce, only one other did so
freely: Pope Celestine V, in 1294. Given how much
the papacy and the world have changed in the seven
centuries since, there is practically no precedent for
Pope Benedict’s new role.
Father Lombardi told reporters that Pope
Benedict will retire to a monastery inside the walls
of Vatican City, where he will dedicate himself to
study and prayer. The Vatican spokesman said he
expected the former professor and prolic author
to continue writing and communicating with the
outside world. Asked whether the presence of a
living former pope would present any danger of
division within the church, Father Lombardi replied
that it would be entirely out of character for Pope
Benedict to say or do anything that might undermine his successor.
Francis X. Rocca is an American writer in
Rome, Italy. He writes for Catholic News Service.
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BENEDICT XVI
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
El Obispo Vásquez reexiona sobre el Papa Benedicto XVI
Editora: Señor Obispo estuvo tan sorprendido como la mayoría de nosotros estuvimos
de saber que el Papa Benedicto XVI ha renunciado?
Obispo Vásquez: De hecho, me quedé atónito.
La renuncia de Benedicto XVI es histórica, es algo
que no se ha hecho en el papado en varios cientos de
años. Desde luego, no esperaba que fuera a retirarse,
por lo que la noticia que salió el 11 de febrero fue
toda una sorpresa.
Al mismo tiempo, tengo que decir que este es un
paso valiente por parte del Santo Padre. Él tiene casi
86 años y ha llegado a darse cuenta de que su salud
no le permite llevar a cabo sus funciones como el
sucesor de Pedro y el pastor principal de la Iglesia
Católica. Él es un hombre santo y estoy seguro de
que ha pensado y orado mucho sobre esta decisión
y ha concluido que su renuncia es por el bien de la
Iglesia. Lo ha hecho simplemente buscando lo que es
mejor para el pueblo de Dios y para toda la Iglesia.
Además de valor, el Santo Padre ha demostrado
una gran humildad para conocer y entender sus
limitaciones. Cualquier persona que haya conocido
a Benedicto XVI ha quedado impresionada por su
humildad. Nuestro Santo Padre ha sido un pastor
muy consciente de las necesidades de los tiempos en
nuestro mundo. En particular, ha expresado su preocupación por un creciente secularismo que quiere
excluir a Dios de nuestra sociedad. Por ello, hizo un
llamado para el Año de la fe como una manera para
todos los católicos de renovar y profundizar su amor
por Cristo y su Iglesia. Esta es también la razón que
ha impulsado fuertemente la Nueva Evangelización,
que le ha llevado a adoptar la última tecnología y medios de comunicación social con el n de comunicar
el mensaje del Evangelio.
Editora: A nales de 2012, cuando visitó
Roma y se reunió con el Santo Padre, ¿cuál era
su estado de salud entonces?
Obispo Vásquez: En diciembre, estuve en
Roma y lo vi un par de veces. Durante una audiencia
del miércoles papal, lo saludé y tuve la oportunidad
EL SR. OBISPO JOE
VÁSQUEZ y varios
otros obispos de Texas
se reunieron con el
Papa Benedicto XVI el
15 de marzo de 2012.
El Obispo Vásquez
dice que Benedicto XVI
será recordado como
un “brillante erudito y
teólogo” y un “hombre
de profunda fe”. (Foto de
L’Osservatore Romano)
de expresarle el amor de la Diócesis de Austin y su
apoyo para él. Fue cordial, amigable y muy atento.
Escuchó atentamente a todos los que lo recibieron.
En ese momento, recuerdo que pensé para mí mismo
que para un hombre de su edad, lo estaba haciendo
muy bien. No cabe duda de que se necesita una gran
cantidad de energía y resistencia para servir y pastorear más de mil millones de católicos en todos los
rincones del mundo.
Editora: Así que a partir del 28 de febrero
llevará una vida de oración ¿correcto?
Obispo Vásquez: Tengo entendido que a partir
del 28 de febrero, dejara la Sede de Pedro y se distanciará de Roma. Ahora está en la residencia ponticia
de Castel Gondolfo, en donde no cabe duda que está
en oración por la Iglesia, y en especial por los cardenales en el cónclave que elegirá al nuevo Papa.
A pesar de que será físicamente apartado del
cónclave, denitivamente estará allí en espíritu y en
comunión con ellos, orando para que Dios escoja el
hombre adecuado para dirigir la iglesia. Y con la guía
del Espíritu Santo, un nuevo Papa será elegido pronto.
Cristo mismo se comprometió a que nunca abandonaría a la iglesia y que él estaría con nosotros hasta el
n del mundo. Por lo tanto, tenemos la conanza de
que el Espíritu Santo, que da energía a toda la iglesia,
guiará a los cardenales para elegir al sucesor de Pedro.
Editora: En lo personal, ¿cuáles son sus mejores recuerdos del Papa Benedicto XVI?
Obispo Vásquez: Hace casi tres años, el Papa
Benedicto XVI me nombró para ser el quinto obispo
de la diócesis, lo que ha sido una gran bendición para
mí. ¡Agradezco el servir en esta Iglesia local, que es
creciente y vibrante!
Estoy muy encariñado con el Santo Padre y
las veces que lo he conocido y estado con él han
sido oportunidades maravillosas para mí de ver un
hombre muy humilde, que obviamente tiene una
gran responsabilidad. Sin embargo, también tiene una
gran compasión y amor por los que él pastorea. Él se
ha gastado y dado de lleno a la Iglesia. Lo veo como
un padre de muchas maneras, así como un brillante
erudito y teólogo, y por encima de todo, él es un
hombre de fe profunda.
En retrospección, renuncia del papa Benedicto parece casi predecible
POR FRANCIS X. ROCCA
CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
Por más que él asombrara al mundo cuando
anunció su renuncia el 11 de febrero, en retrospección
la decisión del papa Benedicto XVI parece casi predecible. Dadas sus declaraciones previas sobre el tema
y sus recientes señales de envejecimiento, uno podría
decir que la gente debió verlo venir.
El verdadero misterio ahora no es por qué el papa
Benedicto escogió dejar el puesto, sino cómo esta acción casi sin precedentes afectará el papado y la iglesia.
En el 2010 el Papa Benedicto le dijo al periodista
alemán Peter Seewald que “si un papa se da cuenta
claramente que él ya no está capacitado física, psicológica ni espiritualmente para manejar los deberes de
su puesto, entonces él tiene el derecho y, bajo ciertas
circunstancias, también una obligación de renunciar”.
Las señales de agotamiento y dicultad para caminar que han impactado a la mayoría de observadores
papales durante meses recientes lo llevaron a concluir,
como dijo ante una asamblea de cardenales dos días
antes del Miércoles de Ceniza, que “la fortaleza de
mente y cuerpo ... se ha deteriorado en mí hasta el
punto que tuve que reconocer mi incapacidad para
cumplir adecuadamente el ministerio conado a mí”.
Muchas personas hoy día asocian las renuncias inesperadas con escándalos o crisis. En la estela inmediata del anuncio del papa Benedicto hubo especulación
predecible de que él podría estar dejando su puesto
bajo presión de algún problema serio en la iglesia,
quizás uno que todavía esté por ser revelado.
Pero si el papa Benedicto declinó renunciar
durante el apogeo de la controversia sobre el abuso
sexual clerical a nales del invierno y principios de la
primavera del 2010, cuando algunos lo acusaron a él
personalmente de mal manejo de casos de sacerdotes
pederastas en Alemania y Estados Unidos, es difícil
imaginar qué tipo de crisis él podría considerar lo sucientemente perturbadora como para renunciar ahora.
Como le dijo a Seewald más tarde ese mismo año:
“Cuando el peligro es grande uno no puede huir. Por
esa razón, ahora ciertamente no es el momento para
renunciar. Precisamente en un momento como este
uno tiene que mantenerse rme y soportar la situación
difícil. Esa es mi opinión. Uno puede renunciar en un
momento pacíco o cuando cuando uno simplemente
no pueda continuar. Pero uno no puede huir del peligro y decir que otra persona debería hacerlo”.
Puede ser que el papa Benedicto haya juzgado la
víspera de la Cuaresma como un momento particularmente bueno para anunciar su renuncia, ya que, como
dijo el portavoz del Vaticano, el padre jesuita Federico
Lombardi, ante reporteros en una sesión informativa
poco después, el momento escogido prácticamente
asegura que la iglesia tendrá un nuevo papa antes de la
Pascua.
Es probable que no sea coincidencia, y ciertamente apropiado, que el papa Benedicto esperara
para renunciar hasta después de haber observado en
octubre pasado el 50mo aniversario de la apertura del
Segundo Concilio Vaticano II. Si su papado ha tenido
un solo proyecto unicador, este ha sido su esfuerzo
por corregir las interpretaciones del Segundo Concilio
Vaticano como una ruptura radical con el pasado a
favor de lecturas que enfatizan la continuidad de las
enseñanzas del concilio con las tradiciones milenarias
de la iglesia.
Ahora el papa Benedicto ha hecho su propia
innovación dramática en la tradición eclesiástica.
De los varios hombres, tal vez tantos como 10, que
han renunciado al papado en la historia del puesto,
solamente uno lo hizo libremente: el papa Celestino
V en 1294. Dado cuánto el papado y el mundo han
cambiado durante los siete siglos desde entonces,
prácticamente no hay precedente para el nuevo rol del
papa Benedicto.
Padre Lombardi dijo ante los reporteros que el
papa Benedicto se retirará a un monasterio dentro de
los muros de Ciudad del Vaticano, donde se dedicará
al estudio y la oración. El portavoz del Vaticano dijo
que esperaba que el exprofesor y prolíco autor continuara escribiendo y comunicándose con el mundo
exterior. Al preguntársele si la presencia de un expapa
viviente presentaría algún peligro de división dentro
de la iglesia, padre Lombardi dijo que estaría totalmente fuera del carácter del papa Benedicto decir o
hacer cualquier cosa que pudiera menoscabar a su
sucesor.
BENEDICT XVI
Benedict promoted better understanding of Vatican II
March 2013
BY FRANCIS X. ROCCA
CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
On Feb. 14, in one of the last public appearances
of his ponticate, Pope Benedict XVI spoke to the
clergy of Rome about his experiences at the Second
Vatican Council, which he had attended as an expert
consultant half a century before.
The pope praised some of the council’s achievements, including its teachings on the interpretation
of Scripture, religious freedom and relations with
non-Christian religions. But he also lamented what he
described as widespread distortions of the council’s
teachings. The news media, he said, had presented
the council to most of the world as a political
struggle for “popular sovereignty” in the church.
This “council of the media” was responsible
for “many calamities, so many problems, so much
misery,” the pope said. “Seminaries closed, convents
closed, liturgy trivialized.”
With that speech, Pope Benedict returned to one
of the major themes of his ponticate. During his
rst year as pope, he had explained in a landmark
speech that Vatican II could be properly understood
only in continuity with the church’s millennial traditions, not as a radical break with the past. He went
on to devote much of his papacy to promoting this
understanding of the council’s teachings.
Under Pope Benedict, the Congregation for the
Doctrine of Faith, which as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger he had headed for almost 24 years, continued
to censure or criticize theologians whose writings,
often invoking the spirit if not the letter of Vatican
II documents, deviated from orthodoxy in areas that
included sexual morality, the mystery of the incarnation and the possibility of salvation without Christ.
The congregation also issued documents assert-
7
ing that the Catholic Church is the one true “church
of Christ” and that missionaries have a duty preach
the Gospel as well as provide charitable assistance to
the needy. Both documents, the Vatican said, were
necessary to correct misunderstandings of the teachings of Vatican II.
Pope Benedict presided over two major Vatican investigations of women religious in the United
States, responding to diminishing numbers and
reported deviations from doctrine and discipline in
the decades since the council. One of the investigations led to an order of reform of the Leadership
Conference of Women Religious, intended to ensure
the group’s commitment to Catholic teaching in areas
including abortion, euthanasia, women’s ordination
and homosexuality.
The pope also tried to correct what he considered
overly expansive notions of interreligious dialogue
that had blossomed after Vatican II, which he feared
could lead to relativism or syncretism. In October
2011, at the 25th-anniversary commemoration of the
World Day of Prayer for Peace in Assisi, Italy, there
was no public multireligious prayer of the kind that
had distinguished the original event, which thenCardinal Ratzinger had criticized at the time. Pope
Benedict also added agnostic “seekers of the truth”
to the guest list, further diluting the interreligious
character of the event.
A lifelong teacher, Pope Benedict naturally made
Vatican II’s continuity with tradition a recurrent
theme in his homilies, catechetical talks, papal documents and even in his personal writings, addressing
the topic in the rst of his best-selling “Jesus of
Nazareth” books.
This pedagogical project culminated in the current Year of Faith, which opened Oct. 11, the 50th
anniversary of the council.
“The council did not formulate anything new in
matters of faith, nor did it wish to replace what was
ancient,” the pope told the congregation at Mass that
day in St. Peter’s Square. “Rather, it concerned itself
with seeing that the same faith might continue to be
lived in the present day, that it might remain a living
faith in a world of change.”
For most Catholics, the pope conveyed this
lesson most clearly through worship. Following the
exuberant and colorful celebrations that had marked
the papacy of Blessed John Paul, especially at World
Youth Days and on other international trips, papal
Masses under his successor became more solemn.
Pope Benedict encouraged the use of Gregorian
chant and the practice of eucharistic adoration, one
of the traditional devotions that had fallen largely out
of use in the wake of Vatican II.
Most dramatically, Pope Benedict lifted most
restrictions on the Tridentine Mass, which had practically disappeared in the post-conciliar reform of the
liturgy. He explicitly intended the move to promote
reconciliation with the disaffected traditionalists of
the Society of St. Pius X, whom he later offered the
status of a personal prelature if they would return to
full communion with Rome, an effort that did not
bear fruit in his ponticate. Yet Pope Benedict also
expressed the hope that celebration of the Tridentine Mass would encourage a more reverent celebration of the new Mass, helping to bring out the
latter’s “sacrality,” “spiritual richness” and “theological depth.”
If Pope Benedict’s service to the liturgical tradition should emerge as one of his major legacies as
pope, he would no doubt be content. As he told
the priests of Rome three days after announcing his
resignation: “I nd now, looking back, that it was
a very good idea (for Vatican II) to begin with the
liturgy, because in this way the primacy of God could
appear, the primacy of adoration.”
Miguel Diaz lauds pope’s grace, courage, wisdom, humility
BY PATRICIA ZAPOR
CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
Pope Benedict XVI’s decision to resign Feb. 28
“was taken with much grace, courage, wisdom and
humility,” said the most recent U.S. ambassador to
the Holy See, Miguel Diaz.
Diaz, now the University of Dayton’s professor
of faith and culture, told Catholic News Service
in a Feb. 11 phone interview that he hopes that in
this period before a new pope is elected, the entire
church will pray about and discuss the possibilities
presented by a change in the top leadership of the
Catholic Church.
Diaz recalled fondly his meetings with Pope
Benedict while he served as ambassador from
August 2009 until last November. A replacement
for the post has not yet been named. President
Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry
both issued statements of appreciation for the
pope’s leadership and recalled their meetings with
him.
Diaz said he and the pontiff’s shared personal
history as theologians who were called to service
outside their chosen professions made for a bond
between them. That they are both returning to
their theological work now feels like another point
of commonality, he said.
“I always found him to be very personable,”
Diaz said, adding that the two of them also
enjoyed switching their conversation among the
several languages that they both speak. “And he
always responded to my kids.”
The pope’s decision to resign because of weakening health “has put a more human face to the
papacy,” Diaz said. “It was a courageous decision to step down.”
In his statement, Obama offered his
appreciation and prayers to Pope Benedict. “Michelle and I warmly remember
our meeting with the Holy Father in
2009, and I have appreciated our work
together over these last four years. The
church plays a critical role in the United
States and the world, and I wish the
best to those who will soon gather to
choose (his) successor.”
Diaz said that as the rst pope to
resign in more than 600 years, Pope
Benedict’s action offers a model for
other leaders to recognize that it can be
acceptable to step down when human
limitations become overwhelming.
“If the pope can do that, recognizing the limitations of his body,” Diaz
POPE BENEDICT XVI received the credentials of the new
said, then “all kinds of religious leaders”
might feel the example opens a door
U.S. ambassador to the Vatican, Miguel Diaz, at the papal
when they begin to recognize limitavilla in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, on Oct. 2, 2009. (CNS photo by
tions in themselves.
L’Osservatore Romano via Catholic Press Photo)
Diaz said that with the return to
With the pope’s resignation coming in Lent, a
his role as a theologian, he’s especially
time of fasting, prayer and reection, Diaz said he
excited by the possibilities this moment holds for the
hopes to encourage and participate in dialogue that
church.
leads to transformation, just as Lent in the liturgical
“What we need in this moment of grace is to
tradition “leads to resurrection, transformation and
have a national and international conversation about
change.”
who the next leader should be,” he said. In a time
Diaz noted that of course “we don’t have a vote”
when “every faithful Catholic has had those moin who is elected pope, but that people at all levels of
ments when we contemplate leaving the church, or
the church can pray and offer guidance to those who
fear that ‘my kids are going to leave,’” this is a modo vote, encouraging them to consider who can best
ment when Catholicism’s leaders should discuss how
tackle the complex issues that lie ahead for the church.
to meet such challenges, he said.
BENEDICT XVI
Resources, prayers for Benedict XVI and his successor
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
8
for this purpose. The Mass is permitted on weekdays
during Lent.
The material suggests that homilies reect on
To help dioceses, parishes and other groups pray
a particular ministry of Pope Benedict XVI as an
for Pope Benedict XVI and for the selection of a new example to follow, especially as it relates to Lent. It
pope, the Secretariat of Divine Worship of the U.S.
mentions highlighting a major theme in Pope BeneConference of Catholic Bishops has provided liturgi- dict’s teachings and writings such as: “the need for an
cal and musical resources as well as specic prayers.
authentic personal relationship with Jesus Christ.”
The resources and prayers can be found at www.
Other themes include the pope’s love for the
usccb.org/about/leadership/holy-see/pope-benedict- liturgy, efforts to achieve peace in the world, his ecuxvi/upload/Pope-Resignation-Resources.pdf.
menical outreach and his constant care, concern and
According to these guidelines, diocesan bishops
outreach for the poor, the sick and oppressed.
and parish priests could offer a special Mass for the
Once the pope’s resignation takes effect Feb. 28,
pope using prayers from the Roman Missal specically a special Mass for the election of his successor can be
BY CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
celebrated, according to the guidelines of the liturgical
calendar, during weekdays in Lent.
The guidelines note that Catholics should take
this time to offer prayers, works and almsgiving for
the successful election of a new pope. It also suggests
that petitions during the Prayer of the Faithful should
pray for the Holy Spirit to “inspire and strengthen the
cardinal-electors” and that the cardinals be open to
God’s grace in the election process.
When the new pope is elected, again bishops and
priests could offer a special Mass for the newly elected
pope according to the guidelines of the liturgical calendar, only on weekdays in Lent, but not during the
days of Holy Week.
Recursos y oración por el papa Benedicto y por su sucesor
días entre semana, durante la Cuaresma.
En el material se sugiere que en las homilías
se reexione sobre un ministerio en particular del
El Secretariado de Culto Divino de la USCCB
papa Benedicto XVI como ejemplo a seguir, esha distribuido recursos litúrgicos y musicales, como
pecialmente en cuanto se reere a la Cuaresma. Se
también fórmulas de oración con el n de ayudar a las mencionan temas subrayados como importantes en
diócesis, parroquias y otros grupos a que recen por el las enseñanzas del papa Benedicto y en sus escritos
papa Benedicto XVI y por la elección del nuevo Papa. como, por ejemplo, “la necesidad de una relación
Se pueden encontrar los recursos y oraciones en
auténtica y personal con Jesucristo”.
este sitio: www.usccb.org/about/leadership/holyEntre otros temas se incluye el amor del Papa
see/pope-benedict-xvi/upload/Pope-Resignationpor la liturgia, sus esfuerzos por alcanzar la paz en
Resources.pdf.
el mundo, su alcance ecuménico y su constante cuiDe acuerdo con estos lineamientos, los obispos dado, preocupación y presencia con los pobres, los
de cada diócesis y sacerdotes de parroquias podrían enfermos y los oprimidos.
ofrecer una Misa especial por el Papa utilizando
Una vez que sea efectiva la renuncia del Papa el
oraciones tomadas del Misal Romano con este
28 de febrero, se podría celebrar una Misa especial
propósito especíco. Se permite celebrar la Misa los por la elección de su sucesor, de acuerdo con los
POR CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
lineamientos del calendario litúrgico, durante los días
entre semana de la Cuaresma.
En los lineamientos generales se hace notar que
los católicos deben dedicar tiempo para ofrecer
oraciones, trabajo y limosna por la exitosa elección
del nuevo Papa por venir. También se sugiere que
las peticiones durante la Oración de los Fieles deben
dirigirse al Espíritu Santo a n de que “inspire y
fortalezca a los cardenales electores” y para que los
cardenales estén dispuestos a recibir la gracia de Dios
en el proceso de elección.
Una vez que el nuevo Papa sea elegido, los obispos y sacerdotes, podrían ofrecer una Misa especial
por el nuevo Papa electo, de acuerdo con los lineamientos del calendario litúrgico, solamente durante
los días entre semana, durante la cuaresma, pero no
durante los días de Semana Santa.
Miguel Díaz elogia gracia, valentía, sabiduría, humildad del papa
POR PATRICIA ZAPOR
CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
La decisión del papa Benedicto XVI de renunciar el 28 de febrero “fue tomada con mucha gracia,
valentía, sabiduría y humildad”, dijo el más reciente
embajador de Estados Unidos ante la Santa Sede,
Miguel Díaz.
Díaz, ahora profesor de Fe y Cultura en la universidad de Dayton, dijo a Catholic News Service el 11 de
febrero durante una entrevista telefónica que tiene la
esperanza de que durante este período previo a que un
nuevo papa sea elegido, la iglesia completa orará por y
discutirá las posibilidades presentadas por un cambio
en el más alto liderato de la Iglesia Católica.
Díaz recordó gratamente sus reuniones con el
papa Benedicto mientras servía como embajador
desde agosto del 2009 hasta noviembre pasado. Un reemplazo para el puesto todavía no ha sido nombrado.
Tanto el presidente Barack Obama como el secretario
de Estado John Kerry emitieron declaraciones de
agradecimiento por el liderazgo del papa y recordaron
sus reuniones con él.
Díaz dijo que la historia personal compartida entre
él y el pontíce como teólogos que fueron llamados a
servir fuera de sus profesiones escogidas creó un vínculo entre ellos. El que ambos ahora estén regresando
a su trabajo teológico se siente como otro punto
común entre ellos, dijo.
“Él siempre me pareció muy agradable”, dijo Díaz,
quien añadió que ambos también disfrutaban cambiar
la conversación entre los varios idiomas que hablan.
“Y él siempre respondía a mis hijos”.
La decisión del papa de renunciar debido al debilitamiento de su salud “le ha puesto una cara más
humana al papado”, dijo Díaz. “Fue una decisión
valiente renunciar”.
En su declaración, Obama ofreció su
agradecimiento y oraciones por el papa
Benedicto. “Michelle y yo recordamos
cálidamente nuestra reunión con el Santo
Padre en el 2009 y he apreciado nuestro
trabajo conjunto durante estos últimos
cuatro años. La iglesia tiene un rol crítico
en Estados Unidos y en el mundo y le
deseo lo mejor a aquellos que pronto se
reunirán para escoger (su) sucesor”.
Díaz dijo que, como el primer papa
en renunciar en más de 600 años, la
acción del papa Benedicto ofrece un
modelo para que otros líderes reconozcan que puede ser aceptable dejar el
puesto cuando las limitaciones humanas
se tornan abrumadoras.
“Si el papa puede hacer eso, reconociendo las limitaciones de su cuerpo”,
EL PAPA BENEDICTO XVI recibió las cartas credenciales
dijo Díaz, entonces “todo tipo de líderes
del nuevo embajador de EE.UU. ante el Vaticano, Miguel
religiosos” podrían sentir que el ejemplo
Díaz, en la villa papal en Castel Gandolfo, Italia, el 2 de ocabre una puerta cuando comiencen a
tubre de 2009. (CNS foto de L’Osservatore Romano a través
reconocer las limitaciones en sí mismos.
Díaz dijo que, con el regreso a su
de Catholic Press Photo)
rol como teólogo, él está especialmente
entusiasmado por las posibilidades que este momento durante la Cuaresma, tiempo de ayuno, oración y
tiene para la iglesia.
reexión, él tiene la esperanza de fomentar y partici“Lo que necesitamos en este momento de gracia
par en el diálogo que lleve a la transformación, justo
es tener una conversación nacional e internacional
mientras la Cuaresma en la tradición litúrgica “lleva a
acerca de quién debe ser el próximo líder”, él dijo. En resurrección, transformación y cambio”.
tiempos en que “todo el católico ha tenido esos moDíaz señaló que, por supuesto, “no tenemos voto”
mentos en que consideramos abandonar la iglesia, o
sobre quién es elegido papa, pero que las personas en
tememos que ‘mis hijos se irán”, este es un momento todos los niveles de la iglesia pueden orar y ofrecer
en que los líderes del catolicismo deben discutir cómo dirección a las personas que sí votan, animándoles
enfrentar tales retos, dijo.
a considerar quién puede abordar mejor los asuntos
Díaz dijo que con la renuncia del papa llegando
complejos que yacen en el futuro de la iglesia.