In 1415, amid the turmoil of the Great Western Schism and a decade into his tenure, Pope Gregory XII resigned. It has been nearly six centuries — 598 years, to be exact — since his resignation. Every pope since then has died in office, until last week.
The resignation of Pope Benedict XVI came as a startling surprise. He announced he no longer felt capable of serving the highest seat of Catholicism and the Sovereign of Vatican City due to health issues. It has become a tradition, perhaps a responsibility, for the pope to remain in his seat until death. Benedict’s deviation from the norm may come as a surprise to some, but others in the Catholic Church see it as inevitable or even a relief.
A feeble pope, hardly able to stand on his own, struggling to mutter a few coherent words, was once a show of strength as he addressed onlookers. He was devoted to the papacy, to the Church and of course, to God. But today, in a period of constant change, where practicality has greater appeal than the intangible and where secrets are quickly revealed, his resignation may appear as a sign of weakness — a frustrating regression.
But Benedict deserves credit for recognizing the new era and for taking steps to help the Catholic Church adapt to it. The steps he took begin with his Twitter account and end with his almost Washingtonian resignation. [quote]To reach out to the faithful and especially the youth, His Holiness created a Twitter account late last year under the name Benedict XVI and @Pontifex.[/quote] He has more than 1.5 million followers but only follows eight, all of which are Pope Benedict XVI accounts in different languages.
From the issues of abortion and same-sex marriage to copious sex scandals, the Church has received a lot of flak in recent years. Benedict inherited a burden and was simply in a wrong time, wrong place situation. As a conservative attempting to get back to the roots of the Church, he saw the swiftly changing world as too much to handle, especially since he was inaugurated at the age of 77.
The regulations and beliefs of the Catholic Church, deemed antiquated by some, are what Benedict believes need to be reinstated. In the name of modernity and in an attempt to reignite the fire of the Church, Benedict is resigning and passing the baton to his successor, whomever that may be. With the loss of Catholics through cultural influenecs, Catholicism has been diminishing. The task at hand for the Catholic Church is to remain relevant.
Benedict’s resignation is not an escape from the scandals, but a testament to his confidence in God, his love for the Church and devotion to his faith. He’s not passing on an at-risk position; he is giving up his seat because he is confident his successor will be more fit than he to deal with today’s issues. As a service to the Church and its future, Pope Benedict resigned out of humility and out of full devotion to the establishment and to his faith.