The Shoes of the Fisherman

For those who haven't heard, the cardinals elected a new pope today. In something of a surprise, the choice was Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger of Germany (I hope the link works, it was down for awhile after the election), and he has chosen to be known as Pope Benedict XVI. His choice was surprising because he was among the front-runners, and there is an old church saying that men who go into a conclave as pope, come out as cardinals.

I don't pretend to know much about Church politics. I think his election signals that the Catholic Church will continue to have an all male priesthood, be opposed to condoms, and not be very welcoming to homosexuals. At least, that's what the American newsmedia is interested in talking about. On the other hand, Catholics can appreciate that 2000 years of doctrine will probably not be turned on its head overnight -- and despite the rather extreme social conservatism, that's probably a good thing. On the third hand, in the current world climate, I fear for the calling of a new Crusade... Just kidding.

Okay, there is some weirdness surrounding the Popes. Two things are directly connected to Pope Benedict XVI and worth posting about. First, Cardinal Ratzinger has spen the past several years as the head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. This institution is the oldest of the large organizations governing the Church, and it is charged with maintaining Catholic dogma and orthodoxy. Or in other words, they root out heretics. When it was first established in the 1500's, the orgainzation was known as The Sacred Congregation of the Universal Inquisition. Yes, that Inquisition. You thought that was gone? Well, "Nobody expects the Spainsh Inquisition," so why should you?

Also, and I'm surprised this hasn't gotten more play, there's a little known Irish Saint named Malachy who lived in the Middle Ages. He wrote a prophetic list of all the Popes, about 111 into his future. All told, he said there would be 266 Popes. Pope Benedict XVI is number 265. The next Pope will suppossedly be the last. In addition, there are several other prophecies surrounding the Popes which are equally apocalyptic. Just something to brighten your day; and as always, you believe it at your own risk.