Pope Francis elected after supernatural 'signs' in the Conclave, says Cardinal

The following comes from the Telegraph UK:

Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, the Archbishop of Vienna, who was himself widely tipped as a possible successor to Pope Benedict, said he had personally had two “strong signs” that Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was “the chosen one” in the run up to vote.

He said only divine intervention could explain the speed with which the Argentine Cardinal - who did not feature on any of the main lists of likely candidates compiled by Vatican experts - was elected.

Speaking to an Anglican conference in London, he also said the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev Justin Welby, had a “strange similarity” to the new Pope.

He said that the two elections were a “little miracle” and a “sign from the Lord” that the two churches should work towards closer unity.

Addressing an audience of 5,000 people in the Royal Albert Hall, at a conference organised by the prominent Holy Trinity Brompton church in west London, he said that he was certain that on the evening of March 12, as the papal Conclave began, none of the Cardinals had known who would be chosen.

“It was a tremendous experience of the Holy Spirit,” he said.

“We were driven by the Holy Spirit to this man – he was sitting in the last corner of the Sistine Chapel: This man he is the chosen one.”

He added: “I received at least two strong signs: one I can tell, the other was in the Conclave I can’t speak about – but real signs of the Lord giving me indication ‘he is the one’.”

The Cardinal said that just after a special mass before the Conclave began he came across a couple from Latin America who are friends of his.

He said: “I met them outside the Basilica and I asked: ‘You have the Holy Spirit, can you give me advice for the Conclave that will start in a few hours?’

“And the woman whispered in my ear ‘Bergoglio’, and it hit me really: if these people say Bergoglio, that’s an indication of the Holy Spirit.

“And I’m sure many of us have received similar signs during the Conclave, it wouldn’t have been possible to have this election so soon and so rapidly.”

To applause, the Cardinal went on: “You know there is a strange similarity with your Archbishop Justin, I hope so much that they will meet soon.”

Laughing, he added: “I don’t know the secrets of the ‘conclave’ at Lambeth Palace.

“But it looks like a little miracle that he became the Archbishop, so I think the Lord as given us a great sign through these two elections and other signs and what I have deeply in my heart … it is as if he would say to the world ‘come home, I wait for you’.”

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Cardinal Dolan: Electing a New Bishop of Rome

The following comes from Cardinal Dolan's Blog:

Greetings again from Rome, the Eternal City, the city of Saints Peter and Paul!

One last word early this “morning” as I pack to leave the North American College, where we cardinals have been staying, and go into the Vatican itself, where we’ll be hosted at St. Martha’s House, a simple little residence. At 10 AM we’ll concelebrate the traditional Mass for the Election of the Pontiff in St. Peter’s Basilica, and then return to Saint Martha’s for seclusion. The first voting will occur in the Sistine Chapel this afternoon, and continue the following days.

I hope the conclave will not go on too long. All I know is that I’m just taking in a small “carry-on” piece of baggage. If we’re in there too long, and if they show photographs of St. Martha’s from outside Vatican City, my room will be the one with the laundry hanging in the window to dry!

The veteran cardinals tell me that the conclave is almost like a retreat. We of course concelebrate Mass every morning to begin the day, and pray the liturgy of the hours together. Obviously, we can visit and talk with each other at St. Martha’s House during our meals and brief time off between the actual voting, but, I’m told the actual hours in the Sistine Chapel, carried out scrupulously according to the traditional protocol, are done in an atmosphere of silence and prayer; it’s almost, the old-timers tell me, like aliturgy.

These last twelve days have been immensely enlightening for me, as I get to know my brother cardinals better. The atmosphere is one of prayer, trust, calm joy, and confidence, with very candid conversations about issues of pastoral urgency, and challenges facing the Church Universal and the next Holy Father.

One cardinal observed, after hearing others list the qualifications our new Pope would need, that, “It seems we have to elect Christ, not a Vicar of Christ!”

Yes, we expect a lot from the Successor of St. Peter, and it would be impossible to find the perfect one. Yet, we expect a lot from our bishops, priests, deacons, and religious women and men; then again, we expect a lot from our spouses, our parents, our teachers, our political leaders, and our law officers.

Jesus calls us “to be perfect;” that’s sobering and can discourage us; but — – here’s the reassurance — – He also helps us with His grace, and never fails in His mercy when we fail.

I guess that’s what I’m asking you as I pack up to enter the conclave: ask the Lord to send His grace and His mercy upon His Holy Church, and upon us cardinals who have the frightening task of electing a new Bishop of Rome!

Watch for the white smoke! I’ll try to be in touch as soon as I can after the conclave ends. I’ll stay for the “Mass of Inauguration” for the new Holy Father, but hope to be home, back with you, my spiritual family, before Holy Week starts on Palm Sunday.

Arrivederci!

Rome Reports: Conclave Updates

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Book review of George Weigel's Evangelical Catholicism

The following comes from Father C. John McCloskey at the NCR:

Right now, the whole world is focused on Pope Benedict’s resignation and the imminent election of a new pope. Thus, the timing of our greatest observer of the global Catholic Church, George Weigel, could not have been better for the release of his latest book, Evangelical Catholicism:

Deep Reform in the 21st-Century Church.

Weigel is best known for his definitive biography of Pope John Paul II. What many people don’t know is that he has written some 18 other books, all of which address in one way or another the state of Christianity — and most particularly of Catholicism.

In my estimation, however, he will be remembered most for this newest entry, not only because of his acute analysis of history, but also because of his keen insights into where the Church is going as she is moved by the Holy Spirit. For example:

“The deep reform of the Catholic Church has been under way for more than one and a quarter centuries. It began with Pope Leo XIII. It continued in one way through the revitalization of Catholic biblical, liturgical, philosophical and theological studies in the mid-twentieth century. It continued in another and at least as important way in the martyrdom of millions of Catholics at the hands of the mid-twentieth century totalitarian systems. … It reached a high-water mark of ecclesiastical drama in the Second Vatican Council. … And it has been brought into sharper focus by the pontificates of two men of genius, Blessed John Paul II and Benedict XVI.”

So where does “Evangelical Catholicism” come in? Weigel puts it this way:

“In the catechetical-devotional Catholicism of the Counter-Reformation Church, the Catholic learned about Jesus Christ through brief catechism formulas that aptly summed up the Church’s doctrine about the Son of God who became the son of Mary. Evangelical Catholicism begins not with knowing about Jesus, but with knowing Jesus.” As Weigel explains, “Evangelical Catholicism proclaims the great gift of friendship with Jesus Christ, not as one attractive possibility in a supermarket of spiritualities, but as the God-given and unique means of salvation for everyone.”

Weigel proceeds to explain in 10 subchapters how his evangelical vision syncs with getting to know Christ in and through the Church — meaning the sacraments, conversion of life, active participation in acts of charity, communal worship, reading of the word of God and understanding and embracing the Church as hierarchical, with a variety of vocations, all converging on holiness as their goal. In my opinion, however, the most interesting observation Weigel makes about his book topic is: “Evangelical Catholicism creates its own culture. Because friendship with the Lord Jesus shapes every aspect of a Christian’s life, the friendship is culture-forming.” As such, “Catholicism enters the public square with the voice of reason grounded in Gospel conviction.”

The second part of this book grapples with the reform of the Church. Although Weigel’s ancestry is German, he certainly is no Martin Luther. There is hardly a part of the Church for which he does not have finely honed and thorough recommendations, from the papacy on down, including the Curia, bishops, laity, priests, liturgy — and the list goes on. His advice is sharp and to the point, but also charitable and understanding.

If I could gain entrance into the conclave, I would smuggle in enough copies of Evangelical Catholicism to place one on the chair of each elector, in hopes that they would adopt this masterpiece of Catholic history and thought as a possible guide for the Church’s mission in the centuries ahead.

Habemus Datam: Cardinals Enter Conclave Tuesday

Hat tip to Fr. Z:

Fr. Lombardi, who attends the General Congregations of the Cardinals:

PRESS COMMUNIQUÉ FROM THE HOLY SEE PRESS OFFICE

The eighth General Congregation of the College of Cardinals has decided that the Conclave will begin on Tuesday, 12 March 2013. A Pro eligendo Romano Pontifice? Mass will be celebrated in St. Peter’s Basilica in the morning. In the afternoon the cardinals will enter into the Conclave.

In the traditional Roman calendar, it will be the Feast of St. Gregory the Great (+604). Let us pray for a liturgically engaged Pope, in continuity with the vision of Benedict XVI.

Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga, SDB gives an interview to Vatican Radio on the Needs of the Church

The following comes from the Vatican News Site:

Cardinals from around the world are making their way to Rome in anticipation of the upcoming conclave, during which the successor of His Holiness, Benedict XVI, Pope Emeritus, will be elected.

Among them is Cardinal Óscar Andrés Rodríguez Maradiaga, the archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, and president of Caritas Internationalis.

Speaking with Emer McCarthy, the cardinal emphasized how, before beginning to discern who the right successor of the See of Peter should be, it is vital to first understand the challenges facing the Church at this time.

“We are in the year of faith,” Cardinal Maradiaga said, “and it is necessary to think about how can we continue the essential mission of the Church.”

“Pope Paul VI used to say, the Church exists to evangelize. This is our mission.”

The Latin American prelate cited materialism as being a central obstacle in spreading the Gospel. “God has been displaced by materialism, and the Church exists to announce God and His loving care of the world. This is our main challenge.” 

When asked about the role of prayer in the discernment process, Cardinal Maradiaga said:
“I think the Holy Spirit will be present. It will be my second Conclave, and I hope it will be the last! Because it’s not easy to say ‘farewell!’ to our dear pope.”

Listen to his interview on Vatican Radio here.

What do Cardinals look for in the next Pope?

George Weigel on the Sede Vacante

The following comes from George Weigel at NRO:

Rome, March 1 — The elderly Carmelite who concelebrated the 9 a.m. Mass at the Church of S. Maria in Traspontina this morning was doing fine until he got to that part of the second Eucharistic Prayer where the commemoration of the pope is made. Then he paused, verbally thrashed a bit, and finally said “tutti i nostri vescovi [all our bishops]” before moving on.

It was a reminder that the Sede Vacante, the period when the Chair of Peter is empty, strikes home with particular force in Rome — and not just because it creates a bonanza for stamp and coin collectors, who scramble to obtain Vatican postage and Vatican coins with that rare “Sede Vacante” mark on them. Everywhere else in the wide world of Catholicism, the Church prays, every day, “for . . . our pope and . . . our bishop” at the Eucharist, its central act of worship. But here in the Urbs, the city blessed by the blood of the two great apostles (as a slogan emblazoned on a tower of the North American College proclaims), there is no “our bishop.” The pope is the bishop of Rome. And when he dies, or renounces the Chair (as Pope Benedict XVI did at 8 p.m. Rome time last night), the Church of Rome is singularly bereft. Kinshasa and Cracow and Ho Chi Minh City and Lincoln, Neb., still have their local bishops; Rome is uniquely orphaned. For the Universal Pastor of the Church is its local bishop, and when the Chair is empty, Rome is empty. And you can feel it.

That same swirl of emotions was evident in Rome on February 22, the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter in the liturgical calendar. How does one celebrate that feast eleven days after the successor of Peter has announced that, in conscience and after long prayer, he is going to renounce the Chair? How, under these circumstances, were preachers to interpret the Bible readings at Mass that day: from Peter himself, instructing the elders of the Church in what amounts to the first papal encyclical, to shepherd the flock of God, and from the Matthean account of Christ’s giving the power of the keys to Peter after his confession of faith?

There is not the slightest doubt that Pope Benedict XVI had the right to renounce the Chair, which is clear in canon law. There should not be the slightest doubt that he did so for the reason he gave on February 11: that, after long prayer and a deep examination of conscience, he had reached the conclusion that, as he could not give the Church the service it deserved because of what he described as his waning physical and mental capacities, he should renounce the Chair and retire to a private life of prayer in intercession for the entire Church. Reckless Italian media speculations that Benedict abdicated under pressure from others, or that he just couldn’t take it anymore, should be treated with the contempt they deserve. If the world ought to have learned anything about Joseph Ratzinger in the past eight years, it is that he is a man of conviction and conscience. And his conscientious decision ought to be honored as just that: a conscientious decision that was an act of self-abnegation, not of willfulness or self-assertion or, conversely, cowardice.

Nonetheless, by doing what has never been done before — none of the analogies to previous renunciations of the papacy really work, as they all involved various pressures and craziness — the pope who embodied the solidity and endurance of Catholic tradition for tens of millions has shaken the Church as it has not been shaken in a long time: perhaps since May 13, 1981, when John Paul II was shot in his front yard, St. Peter’s Square. Roman theologians and scholars whom I respect believe that something has been broken in the existential relationship that many Catholics have long had with the papacy. I think that’s a premature judgment; but it may be prove to be prophetic. Much will depend on Benedict’s successor and the decisions he makes about both his predecessor and his own longevity.

Benedict XVI’s

 advisers have not made that successor’s already-daunting task any easier by convincing the outgoing pope that he should be known as “Benedict XVI, pope emeritus”or “Roman pontiff emeritus” and that he will continue to wear the white cassock, albeit without the mozzetta, that white half-cape. So to underscore the obvious that has been made a bit obscure by what seem to me ill-advised decisions, it must be stated, on this first day of the Sede Vacante, that there is no bishop of Rome, no Roman pontiff, no pope: today, and until the College of Cardinals elects the next holder of that office. And then there will not be “two popes.” There is only one pope, one bishop of Rome, one Roman pontiff, one holder of the power of the keys, one source of authority in the Church. Period.

Read the rest here.

Mary and Pentecost

In Sede Vacante: Come Holy Spirit

Come Holy Spirit, creator, come
from your bright heavenly throne,
come take possession of our souls
and make them all your own

You Who are called Paraclete
blest gift of God above,
the living spring, the living fire,
sweet unction and true love.

You Who are sevenfold in your grace,
finger of God's right hand;
his promise, teaching little ones
to speak and understand.

O guide our minds with your blest light,
with love our hearts inflame;
and with strength, which never decays,
confirm our mortal frame.

Far from us drive our deadly foe;
true peace unto us bring;
and through all perils, lead us safe
beneath your sacred wing.

Through You may we the Father know;
through You the eternal Son,
and You the Spirit of them both,
thrice-blessed Three in One.

All glory to the Father be,
with his co-equal Son:
the same to You great Paraclete,
While endless ages run.
Amen.

Cardinal Dolan on the Final Days of Papacy of Pope Benedict and the Coming Conclave

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Archbishop of New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan talks about Pope Benedict XVI’s final meeting with the cardinals, calling it “a very tender moment” and “mixed feelings” among the cardinals about the upcoming conclave to select a new pope.