[NYer]

Ping!

[NYer]

Ping!

[GOP Poet]

My feelings and thoughts are always—in cases such as this—that God’s will be done. I am sure that the pope has taken a prayerful heart, mind, and soul to this decision and it is Godly led as all big and little decisions should be. It reminds me to thus turn to Christ in all. God bless pope Benedict. It is a time of great evil. I look forward tp God’s continued show of His hand.

[Alex Murphy]

Think about it for a moment. If you were a Pope and completely overwhelmed and feeling inadequate, to whom could you turn? Who could possibly understand the pressures of the Papacy? Who could rightly guide you in this difficult decision? The simple answer is, no one on earth. So instead, our Holy Father has turned to Saint Celestine - the only saint in Heaven who has experienced what Pope Benedict is experiencing.

So the pope has been feeling completely overwhelmed and inadequate for the job, has he?

[Biggirl]

IMHO, after letting this digest, I am not surprised by the decision. For one thing, Pope B16 is in his 80’s and from my experience with dealing with an aging mother who is a few years up from him, you count it a blessing just to be alive each day. Also the duties of being Pope must have taken its toll and who knows if he does have health issues to contend with.

May God Bless and be with Pope B16 and the Pope who will come after him.

[Biggirl]

IMHO, after letting this digest, I am not surprised by the decision. For one thing, Pope B16 is in his 80’s and from my experience with dealing with an aging mother who is a few years up from him, you count it a blessing just to be alive each day. Also the duties of being Pope must have taken its toll and who knows if he does have health issues to contend with.

May God Bless and be with Pope B16 and the Pope who will come after him.

[Seventh_Tiger]

Yipee! now we can all look forward to the crowd of 42,000 waiting for the age long ritual of colored smoke coming thru the Cathedral Chimneys! Does anyone know what each color represents?

[Verginius Rufus]

There was a pope who resigned more recently than Celestine V--Pope Gregory XII in 1415.

Pope Pontian (230-235) resigned when he was sent by the authorities to mines in Sardinia. He died soon afterwards and is considered a saint and a martyr. So St. Celestine is not the only pope who resigned who is considered a saint.

If I remember correctly, Dante put Celestine V in hell--he didn't approve of his resignation.

[Salvation]

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Pope's resignation invokes sadness, gratitude from US bishops

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An Evangelical Looks at Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict’s Resignation in Historical Context
Virtually unprecedented: papal resignation throughout history
Pope Benedict XVI:a papal timeline
"I declare that I renounce the ministry of Bishop of Rome" [Full Text]
Pope Benedict's Address on Resignation of the See of Rome
POPE BENEDICT XVI WILL RESIGN AT THE END OF THIS MONTH, VATICAN PRESS OFFICE TELLS FOX NEWS