The Pope's Successor?
 

While I'm not Catholic, it's hard not to realize the role of the Pope in international affairs. In light of the Pope's most recent hospitalization, I found this list of those most likely to be the next pope:

Who Will Be the Next Pope?
While few Vatican officials dare speak of a successor to the ailing John Paul II, several potential candidates have emerged. Having appointed all but 16 of the 123 members of the College of Cardinals, John Paul II has almost guaranteed that his successor will share his conservative philosophy. Some Vatican observers, however, predict the election of a candidate with more progressive views in order to mend the schism between liberal and orthodox Catholics.

Nationality may be another important consideration in the papal succession. The Polish John Paul II broke the Italians' near-500-year lock on the papacy, and growing Catholic populations in the Third World may focus attention beyond not only Italy but even Europe.

The consensus among speculators is that there is no likely American candidate, and an older cardinal -- who would serve a shorter term than John Paul's -- appears to be a probable choice. Here's a look at some of the possible candidates, from the leading contenders to the long shots:



Camillo Ruini
Age: 68
Ruini is vicar general of the Rome diocese and president of the Italian Episcopal Conference. Appointed cardinal in 1991, he is a conservative who may still be able to appease liberal factions.

Jan Schotte
Age: 70
Having kept close contact with many cardinals from around the world in his role as secretary-general of the Synod of Bishops, this Belgian has diplomatic ties that improve his chances for the papacy.

Lucas Moreira Neves
Age: 73
A Brazilian strongly in favor of celibacy in the priesthood, and a firm opponent of birth control, Neves is touted as the pope's preferred successor. He was recently brought from Brazil to head the Vatican's Congregation for Bishops. Neves is well versed in the Curia, the Vatican bureaucracy, but is rumored to have health problems.

Dionigi Tettamanzi
Age: 65
The archbishop of Genoa is highly favored in Italy. Elevated to cardinal in 1998, Tettamanzi is another relatively new member of the Sacred College. He is regarded as a moderate who may be able to mediate between liberals and conservatives.

Francis Arinze
Age: 66
The Nigerian cardinal, a leading church figure in Africa, is a close friend of the pope's and has performed a crucial role in improving the Vatican's dialogue with Muslim, Buddhist and Hindu groups. His conservative theological orientation fits in well with the current Vatican climate.

Pio Laghi
Age: 76
Born in Forli, Italy, Laghi is prefect of the Congregation for Education in Rome. He is an experienced diplomat and was an apostolic delegate in Jerusalem and Palestine. Laghi is noted for his gentleness and compassion, though his lack of experience as a pastor may hurt his odds.

Christoph Schoenborn
Age: 54
The archbishop of Vienna and a highly respected theologian, Schoenborn was appointed to the College of Cardinals in 1998. Born in Czechoslovakia, he moved with his family to Austria while he was still young. Schoenborn was charged by the pope with the task of preparing the church's new catechism, but his chances may be hampered by his relative youth.

Bernardin Gantin
Age: 77
A close friend of the pope's, Gantin is another Vatican insider. He is prefect for the Congregation of Bishops and dean of the College of Cardinals. He was born in Benin, Africa, and, like Arinze, may find his chances diminished by his non-European origin.

Joseph Ratzinger
Age: 72
The vice-dean of the College of Cardinals is German-born and was once archbishop of Munich. Known as "the Panzer Cardinal," the conservative Ratzinger is powerful in the Vatican but may be too close to the pope for the cardinals' taste.

Carlo Maria Martini
Age: 72
Archbishop of Milan since 1979, Martini is more liberal than John Paul II on issues such as contraception and the role of women in the church. His odds for the papacy are lengthened by his membership in the elitist Jesuit order, which has been viewed with longstanding mistrust by the greater church.

Roger Etchegaray
Age: 76
A Vatican insider, Etchegaray serves as president of the Vatican Council for Justice and Peace. He is from Bayonne, France, and served as archbishop of Marseilles for 15 years.

Jean-Marie Lustiger
Age: 72
Archbishop of Paris, Lustiger was born of a Polish Jewish family in France. After his parents were deported during the Nazi occupation, he lived with a Christian family in Orléans and converted to Catholicism at the age of 13. He has been criticized by Israeli rabbis and may be a long shot if the cardinals decide his nomination would anger the Jewish community.

Martini is my choice.

Shaken, not stirred?

I'm not Catholic and would not argue this, but I've heard and read over quite a few years that the next Pope will almost certainly be Italian because, while the Cardinals are somewhat diverse, the Italians are a majority and the political support folks in the Vatican are as well.

Don't know if that's true, but it's as good as any other theory I suspect.

(I'm not Catholic either, but the politics involved in the College of Cardinals is entertaining to me)

Latin America has somewhere btwn 20 & 25 percent of cardinals under 80 (voting for new pope expires when you turn 80), so there's a probability that a bloc may form with the Latin American cardinals and 3rd world cardinals like those from Nigeria, Vietnam, etc. and a pope from outside Europe could be the end-result.
ETA: I think Italy has only a 15% voting-cardinal bloc.

I'm rooting for that last guy, Jean-Marie Lustiger. Puts whole new meaning into "Is the Pope Catholic?"

What are the odds for each candidate? Anybody want to start a pool?

My money is on the Catholic.

what is this, a version of american idol for the pope? Heh, finally a reality TV show I'd watch. Maybe we should skip the traditional selection ceremony and let Simon light the white smoke....


RUgreek

i'm sure that someone out there somewhere has odds... wouldn't even be surprised if there were Vegas odds.... people bet on everything !

Father Guido Sarducci
 

http://www.followthislogic.com/stuff/fatherguido.jpg

He's got my vote for Pope.

Re: Father Guido Sarducci
 

How could we forget Guido? See, he's Italian, right?

NPR had a nice report this morning on the topic of who might replace the Pope which began talking about the fact that the present Pope was the first non-Italian in the past 500 year to serve the office.

Then it went on to basically say that all of that aside, the whole thing is pretty much up in the air.

There are a lot of opinions, but nobody really has any answers. I remember what an absolute shock it was when the present Pope was elected.

Even for a non-Catholic, it will be interesting.

Not a catholic..but I would choose this guy
 

Francis Arinze
Age: 66
The Nigerian cardinal, a leading church figure in Africa, is a close friend of the pope's and has performed a crucial role in improving the Vatican's dialogue with Muslim, Buddhist and Hindu groups. His conservative theological orientation fits in well with the current Vatican climate.

Re: Not a catholic..but I would choose this guy
 

He was mentioned in the NPR report this morning. A point they made (which is history, but may not have any bearing now), is that traditionally there is a "pendulum" effect in Papal elections. That is, since the present Pontif is conservative, the next one will be at least slightly more liberal in order to ballance Church doctrine.

Who knows?

Re: Father Guido Sarducci
 

Definitely worth a shot!

DeltAlum- I found a liberal candidate for you.

http://user.chollian.net/~movieland/...ans/sinead.jpg
In April 1999, O'Connor was ordained as a Catholic priest in an unofficial ceremony in Lourdes, France. The new Mother Bernadette Marie was immediately denounced by the Vatican.

Re: Father Guido Sarducci
 

Hahaha, gosh those were great episodes of SNL. I remember when the Pope lost his wallet and he was scouring central park until someone found it. What an honorable man:)

Oh, thanks, but unless you've heard something I haven't, I don't get to vote.

(I don't think we Presbyterians have a Pope)

I'm all for Martini...elitist Jesuits are the best. :D

Padre Pio (Saint Pio of Pietrelcina), a humble Capuchin priest from San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy, was blessed by God in many wonderful and mysterious ways. The most dramatic was the stigmata. Padre Pio bore the wounds of Christ for fifty years.

More info: http://www.padrepio.com/ and of the stigmata: http://www.padrepio.com/app2.html

<-- baptized but not a practicing Roman Catholic.

No us presbyterians are good at appointing committees to look into seeing if we have a pope.....

the one thing i take away from being a presbterian....i am a good appointer and delagator! hehehe

Which gives me a good excuse to trot out one of my favorite jokes:

The second grade teacher is trying to get her class to respect other cultures, so she asks the kids to bring symbols of their religion to school with them the next day. They take turns showing their items.

"My name is Mohammed. I'm a Muslim, and this is my prayer rug."

"My name is Mary Margaret. I'm a Roman Catholic, and this is my crucifix."

"My name is David. I'm Jewish, and this is my Star of David."

"My name is Sally Jo. I'm a Southern Baptist, and this is my casserole."



(I've heard Presbyterian substituted for Baptist, btw, but I think they're both true!)

As aurora_borealis will attest, the last can also subsitute "Lutheran" and "jell-o"

We love the jell-o.

As an Elder in the Presbyterian Church, USA, all I can say to that is...

Amen, Sister.

I don't know who our next pope will be but the answer to this question could surprise us all. I read this article & was not surprised by what I read.

The Next Pope?

I'm rooting for Martini as well. I'm not Catholic quite yet (only 40 more days and nights!) but I am in a Jesuit parish. Gotta support the Jesuits.

I've read a lot about this, and there was a program on 60 minutes a few years ago, mentioning several of the "candidates". There was a comment by a Jesuit priest from the US saying that certain Catholics in Europe (and elsewhere) would have a problems having a black pope...to which his comment was (loosely) "if people have a problem with having a black pope, we don't want them anyway" (or something to that effect). Definitely true in my book...there is no place for racism in the church. During my RCIA process we went to different parishes in different neighborhoods in L.A., and I really enjoyed the parish that was majority African American, as well as going to a mass in Spanish because my parish was mostly white (with some of everything mixed in, but mainly white), and it was nice to see that Catholicism includes people of all backgrounds.

One way or another a pope will be chosen, but I do think it would be good if it wasn't an Italian...I can't say that it makes the pope more qualified to be Italian, however Martini is impressive simply because he speaks several languages fluently.

Link doesn't work.

We've had some amazing Italian Popes though. Pope John XXIII was the greatest Pope (at least) of the 20th century. For those of you who don't know who Pope John XXIII was, think Vatican II.

Oh aboslutely...Vatican II is a great thing...though apparently not to those who still want the mass in latin. I don't know, while I'm all for tradition, it's nice to know what is being said.:)

While personally I don't think the Mass should be said exclusively in Latin... it does sound kinda of cool when you go...

Even though no one asked me for my opinion, here it is.

I think that the next pope should be...








... a man of the cloth...








...someone who can think outside the box...








...none other than the very Reverend Jim Ignatowski

http://tinypic.com/1peyhx