Questions about the new pope

[BarryBobPosthole]

Was reading where he is a Jesuit. and yet he chose a name from a notable Franciscan, in fact the founder of the Franciscan order. But I've always thought of the Jesuit order as the more scientific order of the church. Is that true or just an inaccurate perception? there are a lot of Jesuit educational institutions which might be why I think that. And given the vows that the Jesuits take, it would seem to me that there'll be a lot less pomp and circumstance and a lot more practical stuff coming from the Vatican.

Its interesting to observe. I'll bet they're going wild in Buenos Aires.

BKB

[BarryBobPosthole]

and just for Troy.....

858

[LJ3]

It does seem very interesting, indeed. Despite DD saying there a strict policy against political gamesmanship in the selection process, I find that nearly impossible to believe. That's the most prized and valued seat in the Church and must have tremendous internal influence that the world never sees.

I know a Jesuit Priest that is a product of a Loyola education. I haven't gotten a chance to really talk in depth with him but I would love to do so. He speaks and behaves like an Electrical Engineer.

[quercus alba]

He's really John L Smith. Hope he don't screw up the vatican like he did our football team

[DeputyDog]

Barry, the Jesuits do stress education and a lot of them including the current Pope, do hold advanced degrees in things outside of the norm for a clergy member, (theology, etc.).

Popes choose their names usually to symbolize what they intend to focus on in their papacy, or to honor a previous Pope. Benedict chose his name in honor of the previous Pope Benedict, who was Pope during WWI. He intended to focus on the trend in Europe to move away from religion in general, not just the Catholic Church.

Picking St. Francis of Assisi, the founders of the Franciscans, was for two reasons, first St. Francis' strong emphasis on serving the poor, which has been a major theme in the new Pope's entire history as a priest and bishop. The second, is that St. Francis reportedly had a vision of Jesus telling him to "rebuild my church" at a time of great problems in the church. So that seems fitting for the current times as well.

Len, it's hard to believe if you look at it in purely secular terms. I don't know that it's the most prized position, but definitely the most respected.

The position of the church is that the cardinals meet together to speak on what they believe the biggest needs of the church are, and to get to know more about each other and their backgrounds. Then they pray and discern about those issues and the Holy Spirit reveals to them who the best choice is. It won't be unanimous because everyone discerns in their own way.

I may be out of touch, but I'm a lifelong Catholic, and I don't see the "disarray" in the Church that the media reports on all the time. Most of the polls they show that are supposed to be taken among Catholics, do not make any distinction between people that identify themselves as Catholic and Catholics that are regular mass goers. That makes a big difference. There area a lot of people that still identify themselves as Catholic, but don't follow the teachings of the Church and in reality are practicing their own version of Catholicism. Nancy Pelosi and Joe Biden are two very prominent examples, as well as most of the Kennedy family.