On Pope Benedict

When I heard that Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was elected as Pope, my heart sank. I'm just one of those cranky Protestants, but I thought this guy was not what my Catholic brothers and sisters needed.

But to my more liberal friends, I don't think any of us should have expected that the Catholic Church would elect a flaming progressive. Of course we didn't expect Ratzinger, either.

With that said, I do want to say that we can't fully know how Pope Benedict XVI will rule. Yes, we know of his hardline stances on issues such as homosexuality and women in the church, but that was in his position as the enforcer of doctrine. The papal office is a whole other kettle of fish. We might have a clue, but again, we don't really know if Pope Benedict will be the same as Cardinal Ratzinger.

Some people are bringing up the fact that the Pope, who is German, was a member of the Hitler Youth. Rick Heller over at Transparent Eye is shocked that the cardinals would pick someone involved with any Nazi organization. While that is troubling, I'm more concerned with how he has treated Jews since than what he did 60 years ago. Also, they have not found that he did any crimes. It was a poor choice, I agree. But again, if he is working for reconciliation now, then what he did back then should not weigh as much.

The Yellow Line has more about this issue.

As a fellow Christian, all I can do is pray for the best. I don't agree with the new Pope on his views,( remember, I am gay) but I will pray that he will listen to God and open his heart to dissenting views.

Hope and pray. That's all we can do. And sometimes, it's enough.