Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger elected 265th Pope

[Fishercat]

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe...day/index.html

VATICAN CITY (CNN) -- Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger of Germany has been selected by the Roman Catholic Church as the new pope.

Ratzinger, who took the name Benedict XVI, appeared on the balcony of the Vatican Basilica to greet the people and deliver his first papal blessing.

"Dear brothers and sisters, after our great pope, John Paul II, the cardinals have elected me, a simple, humble worker in God's vineyard," according to a translation of remarks he made in Italian. "I am consoled by the fact that the Lord knows how to work and how to act, even with insufficient tools, and I especially trust in your prayers.

"In the joy of the resurrected Lord, trustful of his permanent help, we go ahead, sure that God will help. And Mary, his most beloved mother, stands on our side."

and about Ratzinger

Powerful figure in Vatican

Once the archbishop of Munich, Germany, and for many years prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, Ratzinger, 78, was one of the most powerful men in the Vatican and is widely acknowledged as a leading theologian.

Ratzinger, who turned 78 on Saturday, served for 20 years as John Paul II's chief theological adviser.

As a young priest he was on the progressive side of theological debates but shifted to the right after the student revolutions of 1968.

In the Vatican, he has been the driving force behind crackdowns on liberation theology, religious pluralism, challenges to traditional moral teachings on issues such as homosexuality, and dissent on such issues as women's ordination.

The dean of the College of Cardinals since November 2002, he was elevated to cardinal by Pope Paul VI in June 1977. (Profile)

Cardinal Jorge Arturo Medina Estevez announced Benedict XVI's election in the traditional Latin, but he prefaced it by saying the words "brothers and sisters" in several languages, an introduction that is likely a bow to the universality of the Roman Catholic Church and its 1.1 billion members.

From what I hear, some people are critical of his strongly conservative views and some of my friends are happy with him. Following up a legend in JPII will be very tough though, although he may not even try to follow him up, rather than be his own man.

[McKain]

He's very conservative, but he's 78, so chances are he'll be gone soon. He was chosen more as a bridge to the next "generation," anyway.

[Providence A's]

they picked him because he's old (78) and won't be there too long...that way they can then pick a new younger pope and he won't have to be judged as much against john paul II...at 78, I'd be surprised if he makes it more than 5 years whereas the last one lasted 26 years

[DiamondDave]

Well.. I'm not catholic... I need to start off with that....

But I think a conservative Pope is exactly what the catholic church sould have...

I agree with him that adherance to the doctorine is essential, and not changing beliefs because of popular culture etc.. I.E. just because it is more acceptable to be homosexual, does not mean that there should be homosexual priests (just an example)...

While I too do not think we will see a 15 year reign of this Pope... I don't think that this is just a bridge to a new and radical changing of the guard later on...

[Impossibles]

..and now everybody can go back to not caring.

[CincyRedsFan30]

Congratulations to him. He sounds like an excellent selection!

[ghettochild]

what would your pope name be?

i would just be known as pope. or pope biscut the first.

but just pope works.


[]D()[]D3

[PacMan]

Pope Mark IV

oh yeah

Anyways, congrats to the new Pope, I give him 4 years.

[ATLien]

I am disappointed in the selection, but he isn't here for the long term as has been mentioned. There is still hope.

[Providence A's]

why are you guys congratulating him? is he a member here? did I miss something?

[HuskerFan2002]

I watched most of the news coverage on CBS this morning. I actually predicted him to be called Pope John Paul III.

[RockSports17]

You know I'm alright with the selection...I'll give him a chance though

[DirtyKash]

Dang... He should have called himself "Pope Jesus Christ II". I'd get a kick out of that.

[McKain]

He looks creepily similar to Emperor Palpatine/Darth Sidious from Star Wars, doesn't he?

[RLA68]

Wow, my money was on Tony Larussa. I felt he was great leader for the Cardinal organization.

Seriously, congrats to all Catholics here.

My pope name would be John Luke I