Papal resignation

I got a text message from a friend of mine at 6:30am today saying "Pope resigning Feb. 28?!?"  I was shaking I was so shocked, no pope has resigned since 1415 (because the the Great Schism) and no pope has resigned on his own free will since 1294!  But, Pope Benedict XVI said he realized that he no longer has the strength to carry on.  He will be 86 in April and I am guessing he feels the Church needs someone younger and more energetic to tackle the many issues facing Her.  I get the impression that he never wanted to be pope and was very much looking forward to going home to Germany after Pope John Paul II died in 2005.

I was privileged to have seen the pope three times - in 2005 at World Youth Day in Germany, in 2008 at a Mass at Yankee Stadium, and in 2011 in Rome when Archbishop Gerald Lacroix '75 received the pallium from him.

A papal election is a rare event in our Church.  It will be the fourth in my lifetime (although one was after John Paul I's 30 day papacy) and the first with a living pope in centuries.  It will be a great opportunity to teach our students about the papacy and our Church so stay tuned!