De Omnibus Dubitandum Est.

To our bishops and cardinals -- we can't trust you! We want to trust you, but we can't. The only time we hear from you is when you want our money! We are Catholic -- does any of what we believe matter to you???

This is really fascinating and well worth watching. A decade ago, and just two years before he became Pope, EWTN's Raymond Arroyo interviewed the then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who had been Prefect for the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith for 22 years. The CDF, previously known as the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition (wherefrom arose the names Roman Inquisition or Holy Inquisition popularly used in reference to the 16th century tribunals against witchcraft and heresy), and after 1904 called the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Holy Office, is the oldest of the nine congregations of the Roman Curia. Among the most active of the congregations, it oversees Catholic Church doctrine. Its offices are housed at the Palace of the Holy Office at the Vatican. What we see here is Joseph Ratzinger before he became Pope, speaking about liturgy, about his vision for the future, about the sex abuse scandal, about the Papacy of John Paul II, and abou...

Bishop Thomas on his last visit to my Parish. My Apostle, the Right Reverend Thomas McMahon, Bishop of Brentwood, comments on the Pope's decision to resign: 11 Feb 2013 I heard with great surprise the news of Pope Benedict’s resignation this morning. I am obviously saddened to hear of the Pope’s state of health. He is very much in my thoughts and prayers. It is characteristic of his integrity and clarity of mind that he has made this courageous decision. It shows clearly his great concern for the pastoral well-being of the Church. Pope Benedict is remembered very fondly in our country as a result of his visit to the UK in 2010. He brought inspiration and encouragement to Christians of all denominations and indeed members of all faiths. He will also be greatly appreciated for his accessible yet profound teaching of the Christian Faith. Indeed, the Year of Faith which Roman Catholics are currently celebrating is very much the Pope’s own initiative. I would ask all pe...

Some of the best stuff on the Pope. Ttony at the Muniment Room has an excellent post here  where he remarks: His decision was taken some time ago: he told his brother six months ago, but he started dropping in on Celestine V rather longer ago. It's not unreasonable to suppose that everything he has done in the last two or three years has been done with his leaving in mind, and with his leaving everything in as good a condition as possible for his successor. Ttony explains that his... ...initial reaction - that he should have stayed on to death - is being replaced by an appreciation that Pope Benedict probably has a rather better idea of what he should do than me. We have had eight years - eight game-changing years - from a Pope who couldn't have been expected to last anything like this long. We are seeing the supernatural eddying into the natural world through his decision. The historian Timothy Stanley suggests that Benedict XVI will be known as... ...a l...

Please join me in this prayer for our Holy Father and for his successor. February 2013 Heavenly Father, we thank and praise you for the wonderful gifts of leadership, wisdom, holiness, charity and integrity which you have bestowed upon our Holy Father, Pope Benedict. In these coming weeks and months, guide and protect Your servant Benedict. Grant him we pray, a spirit of courage, knowledge and love. Comfort him as he begins this new chapter in his life, and bless him with joy, peace and serenity. Lord, source of eternal life and truth, We pray for an outpouring of your Holy Spirit upon the cardinals as they gather in conclave for the election of a new Bishop of Rome and Vicar of Our Lord Jesus Christ. May the hearts of our cardinals be open to the wisdom of the Holy Spirit, beyond any human judgment, to elect the person most pleasing to You, Heavenly Father, who will guide the Church at this momentous time in history. We invoke our Blessed Mother Mary, united in prayer with all the...

Cardinal Francis Arinze, Prefect Emeritus of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, tells us what it felt like to be a Cardinal in the room as the Pope announced his plans to resign and talks some sense into all of us who are feeling sad that the amazing Joseph Ratzinger, a man who does not rush, who is not rash, who is clear-headed and firm of purpose, is standing aside from the Chair of St. Peter. He is brilliant isn't he? The key point I think here is that he states that our faith does not rest on the Pope, but in Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. Kind of brings you to your senses a bit. What he says about sentiment is a brilliant observation; that we all get caught up in a pope's style, the way he looks, the way he speaks. I remember feeling as afraid when Pope Benedict was elected as I do now, waiting with trepidation to see who will be next. But as Cardinal Arinze so wisely says, the Holy Spir...

This is a useful little video from Rome Reports which explains what will happen next!

Professor Scott Hahn made this interesting comment regarding the Pope's resignation today on his Facebook page: Back on April 29, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI did something rather striking, but which went largely unnoticed. He stopped off in Aquila, Italy, and visited the tomb of an obscure medieval Pope named St. Celestine V (1215-1296). After a brief prayer, he left his pallium, the symbol of his own episcopal authority as Bishop of Rome, on top of Celestine's tomb! Fifteen months later, on July 4, 2010, Benedict went out of his way again, this time to visit and pray in the cathedral of Sulmona, near Rome, before the relics of this same saint, Celestine V. Few people, however, noticed at the time. Only now, we may be gaining a better understanding of what it meant. These actions were probably more than pious acts. More likely, they were profound and symbolic gestures of a very personal nature, which conveyed a message that a Pope can hardly deliver any other way. In...

Some shocking news this morning that Pope benedict XVI is to step down from the Papacy due to ill health. His full statement: Full text from Pope Benedict XVI: Dear Brothers, I have convoked you to this Consistory, not only for the three canonizations, but also to communicate to you a decision of great importance for the life of the Church. After having repeatedly examined my conscience before God, I have come to the certainty that my strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine ministry. I am well aware that this ministry, due to its essential spiritual nature, must be carried out not only with words and deeds, but no less with prayer and suffering. However, in today’s world, subject to so many rapid changes and shaken by questions of deep relevance for the life of faith, in order to govern the bark of Saint Peter and proclaim the Gospel, both strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the last few months, has d...