Times, They Are a Changin' (Kinda)

Ah, finally. A new Pope. The whole thing was very interesting, considering John Paul II had been Pope since before I was born. You know, I was really hoping for the Nigerian, but at least we didn't get an Italian. Not that there's anything wrong with Italians, don't get me wrong. It's just that I think we really needed to see that the Church's leaders are acknowledging the Church's diversity. A German might not exactly scream "Wow, look at how catholic we are (catholic with a little "c" means universal)" but, like I said, at least he's not Italian.

I was also happy to see that he is a conservative. Now again, don't get me wrong, I'm all for shaking things up a bit. It's just that what kind of church would we be if everytime we get a new Pope, drastic changes started to be made? It would be a little hard to swallow if the new guy started saying stuff like "Ok, priests are allowed to be married, women are allowed to be priests and let's all start taking the pill." It would make me wonder exactly who was running the show...God or a guy in a little white hat with long flowy robes. (I realize that if you're a non-Catholic you might already wonder this. But I'm pretty secure with the whole "Holy Spirit guiding the Pope" thing.)

Anyway, that's all I really have to say about it. I hope that Benedict XVI provides the kind of strong leadership that we need today, and couples it with genuine compassion and love. He's got some pretty big shoes to fill.