Earlier this week, the resignation of Pope Benedict caught our attention. Speculation now swirls around the meaning of his action, as well as what the next Pope will bring to the Roman Catholic Church.
Setting aside the theological and ecclesiological issues, his resignation is an indicator of major changes in our global community. He cites that his mind and body are no longer up to rigors of "the job."
Think back fifty or hundred years.Consider what the daily schedule of a Pope might have been. The contrast with today is immense. And I am not referring to any issues that the church faced at that time or what involvement a Pope might have had in those issues.
When I was a child, people got old and died. But the definition of old, even in a child's mind, is not the same as today's definition. Living to a ripe old age is a contemporary phenomena in which being 90 or a 100 years old has become more common. For some, these extended years are a gift. For others - and their families - these years are a painful burden physically and emotionally. Mind-deteriorating diseases such as Alzheimer's are an increasing possibility for all of us. As is a life of hours spent waiting in clinics and hospitals, where elderly people seek relief from pain and chronic conditions.
Pope Benedict and his immediate predecessor are illustrations of what confronts all of us as we think about our own futures. My grandparents and great grandparents would have had difficulty understanding the concept of health care directives and making choices as we age about what treatments we wish or do not wish . Death for them was something that happened in due course - and they might have believed making such choices would be "playing God.."
But Pope Benedict's resignation signifies something even greater about changes that have swept our world. In the past, the job description of Pope did not include extensive global travel. Popes did not go gallivanting around the world, enduring the physical demands of such travel. Now, a Pope needs considerable physical stamina. Clem and I travel a lot - and have a way to go before we reach Benedict's age. When I look at the travel itineraries of these last two Pope's, I doubt I could deliver.
The reality is that the globe has "shrunk" - not literally, but it could as well have done so. We listen to events as they happen. I knew Monday night at 10 pm that North Korea had exploded a nuclear test bomb. I watched the State of Union address last night - as it unfolded. People who read this blog are from far away places such as Russia and India as well as close to home. And if I twittered (I don't, so don't even try), I would enter into an unimaginable (to me) flow of conversation. Even Benedict tweeted.
Sometimes all this change reminds me of being a parent. Parents often are several years behind their children's functional ages - seeing their children as much younger than they actually are, while children believe they are grown-ups still in their mid-teens and chafe at any restrictions. It takes parents time to catch up. It is the same with our world - most of us still live in a past version, even as we use current technological tools. Then a Pope resigns because his mind and body are no longer up to the demands of the job. And we sit up and take notice at this unprecedented act.
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