Go Home, Benedict, You’re Drunk
Just when you think that there’s a slight possibility that maybe, just maybe, Pope Francis might be the first Christian Pope, he sends his notes to Pope Benedict for an opinion.
Here’s the scary part:
“‘Bring this to Pope Benedict; you will see that the first page after the contents is empty,” he said, according to the Associated Press. “Pope Benedict should write there everything that he has in the way of critiques when he has read it and give it back to me.'”
“Three days later, he said to me, ‘I have four pages here … in a letter, and please give this letter to Pope Francis,'” Gaenswein recalled of Benedict.
Four damn pages? Really? You ask for one page of critique and you get back four? What? You don’t like his shoes or something? Heck, Benedict, I don’t like you worth diddle squat but even I couldn’t write four pages criticizing you.
He must be bored.
I could come up with a lot more than 4 pages on Benedict.
On Benedict’s 4 pages critiquing Francis – I am sure it had to do with what he considers bad taste in being concerned about the poor; his tolerance for others; his criticism of the unfeeling rich; his slap-down of priests who abuse their positions, etc.
1I’m not Catholic. Benedict is a very old sick man. Bless his heart. Imagine thinking all your later years that you’re the voice of God on earth and suddenly some outrageously open-minded person comes along and gets the title and doesn’t agree with you, doesn’t agree with a lot of the elderly Catholics, and speaks his mind. The nerve of him!
2As a (part-time) Catholic, I request a silent retirement for Bennie. He’s done enough.
More than enough.
3I am still trying to wrap my head around how an ex-Nazi got to be Pope.
4I’m not sure I understand this article. A critique is not the same as a criticism. I don’t have much respect for Benedict, but for his successor Francis to run ideas by Benedict doesn’t seem necessarily bad. Francis is new to the job and Benedict has experience. He might have something worth saying, even though most of what he used to say was bad.
5Ratzinger, when Cardinal, was in charge of the papacy’s investigations of criminal sexual predation among priests (and the bishops who protected them). He belongs in the dock at the ICC, IMHO.
6If somebody asks me for a critique, I feel obliged to put a little effort into it. Criticism is more a “shoot from the lip” deal. Guess we’ll find out which Francis got sometime!
7AND Francis INVITED his comments, they are not unsolicited, which is also important. If Benedict were merely pontificating (sorry, couldn’t resist!) unasked, that would be something to mock.
Furthermore Francis is a Jesuit. He can take it, I assure you. It is further evidence of his humility.
8There are lots of ex-Nazis around. I’m not taking sides here except to say that back then, Hitler started good organizations for teenagers which resonated well with the country. They had no idea what they were getting into. Later on, many of those people withdrew from being Nazis. I do not know the history of Francis on that issue, or on most issues actually. I just know that Francis is doing a good thing, I hope.
9Cheryl. I think it and you say it. Yes indeed.
10Obviously the Vatican takes re-branding more seriously than the GOP. From Pope Rat to Pope Francis is a major change.
Four pages? Am surprised Pope Rat wasn’t too apoplectic to respond to the humanity of Pope Francis. Four pages, so yeah the good Pope got under the skin of the old rodent. Score your recent missive a success, Pope Francis, it drove Benedict crazier. When his miter explodes, you’ll know you are on the correct path.
11The retired German Shepherd is blind in one eye and seeing less and less out of the other. Ten to one he did jot down something on one sheet of paper as best he could, such as, why are you sending this to me when you know I can’t see diddly? And the remaining 3 sheets were done without his knowledge by his secretary. It is also up to the recipient to decide whether or not he will pay any damn attention to the stuff. Frankly, despite the fact that Paco is way more of a human being than a vast number of his predecessors, I see this one page thing as a simple gesture and nothing more.
12Besides, as I recall the German language, most of the words are three blocks long. One page wouldn’t even cover a sneeze.
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