Tag Archive | electing the next pope
December 16, 2020  

“The Two Pope”, 2019 Movie, Pure Fiction — Rather Than Faction &, Moreover, Riddled With Technical Errors.

by Anura Guruge

Beautifully crafted, well acted movie though the MAIN storyline is pure, unadulterated fiction.

The primary crux of the story, the 2012 meeting between the then pope, Benedict XVI, & the future pope, viz. Francis, in Castel Gandolfo did NOT happen. Period.

Yes, in December 2011 ‘Francis’ (then Bergoglio) would have, per Canon Law, had to have tendered his RETIREMENT, by letter, to Benedict XVI. That was because he had turned 75. The retirement would have been from being the Archbishop of Buenos Aires. This is rote. All Bishops, irrespective of standing, must tender a letter of retirement upon turning 75. It is up to the pope to accept & there are instances when the pope might take 5-years to do so. The retirement would NOT have been a BIG deal. Bergoglio would NOT have disappeared from the Church. He could have still carried on his work in Argentina, albeit as a CARDINAL — a retired Archbishop. I think we have about 40 cardinals in this category as I write.

Plus, though it was rumored he was runner up in the 2005 conclave, Bergoglio, in 2012, was by no means the favorite to be the next Pope — especially not so in Benedict XVI’s eyes. All that was rubbish.

What disturbed me much was the rank technical errors to do with the conclaves. Those should not have occurred. Easy enough to have got right. They could have JUST checked one of my books. SMILE. (Yes, the “The Next Pope 2011” book was still good & accurate.)

Let me just list a few of the most egregious.

  1. They do NOT, let me REPEAT, do NOT, use ‘bingo balls’ to keep track of who has voted. That is so, so stupid. The cardinals vote per their precedence — which is also how they are seated. They get up, in a row, one-after-the-other, & go place their ballot. You don’t need bingo balls to keep track. All can see the cardinals voting in sequence. Where they got that was STUPID.
    …..
  2. The new pope does NOT appear on the balcony as the Habemus Papam is being announced. In 2013 there was a 30-minute gap between the Habemus Papam & Francis appearing on the balcony. In 2005 the gap was shorter BUT there is an interval, so that banners can be draped, before the new pope appears.
    …..
  3. The new pope CERTAINLY does not, causally, pick up his new white zucchetto from a shirt box in the Sistine sacristy as he is leaving it. There is a ceremony in which the white zucchetto is presented to the new pope by the Secretary of the Conclave! That was stupid.
    ….
  4. In 2013 Francis did NOT say “May God forgive you for what you have done in my regard” at the Conclave. He said it much later, in jest, over dinner. It was John Paul I, in 1978, who said it at the conclave. Jeez.
    ….

IF you really want the TRUE in-&-outs of how a pope is elected check out this book.

This is the book. Available on Apple, Amazon, etc. etc.

Snippets from the book.

Click to ENLARGE.

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by Anura Guruge

 

November 6, 2020  

Thoughts On The “Next Conclave” By U.K. Catholic Canon Anthony Churchill, STL — Latest Consistory, November 2020.

by Canon Anthony Churchill, STL.

November 6, 2020

Implication of forthcoming consistory on conclave.

The decision of the Pope to create 13 new Cardinals will add to the unpredictability of the next Conclave. Nine of these will be electors while 4 are in effect ‘honorary’ Cardinals, being over the age of 80 (i.e., non-electors).

It seems unlikely that the Consistory set for November 28th can take place in the normal way. The COVID 19 pandemic and the restrictions on public events and on travel must make it inappropriate to ask elderly gentlemen to travel from all over the world at this time. Neither can it be wise to encourage the normal crowds of supporters to do the same.

I would hope that that the Pope will hold a brief ceremony in Rome with  the Curial Cardinals in order to officially “create” the new Cardinals, and postpone the ceremonies until a later date.

Pope John Paul II started the custom of inviting the entire College of Cardinals to come to Rome for these consistories. It was the custom to hold a day-long meeting of the College to which the new men were invited. These meetings gave the Cardinals a chance to meet each other and to some extent at least to get to know each other. This practice continued under Pope Benedict XVI, but has been stopped by the present Pope. It is not clear why Pope Francis should have done this, but in my view,, it does not help the new Cardinals to integrate and become more aware of the wider Church.

To my mind it can only be a disadvantage if the Cardinals arrive for the eventual Conclave not knowing each other. Francis has chosen men from all over the world, many from remote parts. They may well be outstanding pastors and men of wide pastoral experience, but they will often be strangers to Rome, and unfamiliar with its ways and the Italian language.

On the one hand this very diverse College could allow for an original and perhaps surprising result. It might lead to a Pope from “the peripheries” with a very different perspective on the future of the Church. Such a Pope might reflect more closely the concerns of Catholics in a very diverse world.

On the other hand , it seems to me that a large number of recently created Cardinals who are strangers to the Vatican and to each other could be at risk of being manipulated by those who are sometimes known  as the “grand electors”. Groups who are well known to each other and are well versed in Vatican affairs could exercise undue influence in these circumstances.

It remains to be seen how this will all “play out”, but it certainly does not make it any easier to predict what might happen at the Conclave when it comes.

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September 23, 2020  

Thoughts On The “Next Conclave” By U.K. Catholic Canon Anthony Churchill, STL.

by Canon Anthony Churchill, STL.

August 25th 2020

Conclave

I can see the obvious similarities between “Trump versus Biden” and “Francis versus whoever” . I think there is a lot truth in that, but the conclave will be rather more complex than that. As in U.S. politics, so in the Church, there is a deep division between those who are enthusiastic supporters of Francis and those who, for a variety of reasons, oppose him.

In my view that only describes part of the story. Many Catholics do not so easily fit into one camp or the other. Right wing American Catholics are inclined to see their Republican Party  ideals and values as part and parcel of their Catholic Faith.

They look at the Gospel through Republican filters,

For them Francis seems to be a dangerous socialist and radical after the style of Bernie Sanders. Whereas in Europe many take a much more nuanced view.

Certainly there are many Catholics in Europe and Australia who more or less share the American “Right’s” analysis and hostility, but as I see it, these people tend to communicate only with those of a like mind.  They do not represent as many ordinary Catholics as they might think.

Francis’ concern for the poor is shared by very large numbers of Catholics who cannot so easily be classified as liberals or conservatives. Quite a number of Cardinals share that concern. It will become apparent that a good number of Cardinals from the “Global South” have very different priorities, which will govern their attitudes going into the Conclave.

Edward Pentin’s book is a very useful analysis of the views of his 19 candidates, but the analysis clearly reflects his own views.  It can be very helpful toto read what he has discovered of their views on a range of subjects. It does not follow that what he sees as a negative will be seen in that light by the Cardinals who will certainly study it with interest.

I think that it might take a little time for a consensus to emerge as it has to for a Cardinal to achieve the necessary two thirds of the votes, but I suspect that unlike the American November election the Conclave will be altogether more subtle.

If I can risk a prediction, I cannot see the “Anti-Francis” Cardinals having enough support to elect Cardinal Sarah, or even Raymond Burke ( utterly impossible surely).

Equally I cannot see the strongly “Pro Francis” crowd being sufficiently numerous to elect Cardinal Tagle.

The group of Cardinals who don’t really belong in either camp will be crucial in obtaining the requisite two thirds.  I suspect we need to know much more about their concerns.

I certainly see parallels with Trump versus Biden, but that will only be part of the story.

These are my initial thoughts bearing in mind that, as always, so much will depend on when the Conclave happens. We could yet see one or two more consistories with new candidates, and many of the ones mentioned in Pentin’s book will soon reach 80 years old. I cannot see the election of an octogenarian Pope.

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August 28, 2020  

A Catholic Priest From The UK, A ‘Canon’ No Less, Gives My “Electing The Next Pope” ($2 eBook), 5-Stars.

by Anura Guruge

Click to ENLARGE & read. On Amazon.

This is Canon Canon Anthony Churchill, STL.

Click to ENLARGE & read here.

This is the book. Available on Apple, Amazon, etc. etc.

Amazon product page. Click to ENLARGE & read here.

≡≡≡≡  ≡≡≡≡  ≡≡≡≡  ≡≡≡≡  ≡≡≡≡

Full Disclosure.

Father Churchill & I are NOT strangers — though we have yet to meet.

We know each other through my books. He contacted me over 10-years ago after seeing my “Pope Names” book. We have been penpals ever since.

He is no stranger to the readers of this blog. He helps me out.

But, his review is genuine. Honest. SMILE.

≡≡≡≡  ≡≡≡≡  ≡≡≡≡  ≡≡≡≡  ≡≡≡≡

Snippets from the book.

Click to ENLARGE.

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by Anura Guruge

 

August 13, 2020  

“Electing The Next Pope” — A Beginner’s Guide To The Next Conclave ($2 eBook On Apple, Amazon, Barnes & Noble etc).

by Anura Guruge

On Apple … 

Click to ENLARGE & read here

Click to ENLARGE.

The title is self-explanatory. Next papal election. I didn’t call it ‘Conclave‘ since this is aimed at an audience that might NOT equate a papal election with a conclave! This is a book aimed at a different audience to my other pope books. This one is for the ‘beginner’. So, in this book I take pains to explain stuff I don’t in my other books. I also set out to be minimalistic. I called it “Goldilocks“. I really tried to keep the volume of content just right. Not too much; not too little.

Well, I have tried to give you a few images.

These days I make sure my eBooks are available across APPLE, Amazon, Android etc. I gave up trying to convince folks that Amazon Kindle eBook can be read on Apple. SMILE.

I was going to call this book: “Be A Bar Stool Expert on How Popes are Elected“. Well, you can catch the drift.

For those that want chapter & verse, I did publish this 518-page book earlier this year.

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by Anura Guruge

 

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