Reflecting on the Pope Emeritus
By
As the Cardinals prepare for the serious duties of entering the Conclave and choosing the next Supreme Pontiff, the idea of having a new Holy Father any day now is exciting, but also has led us to reflect on the last papacy. We thank Pope Emeritus Benedict for his selfless service to the Church and pray for Gods will to be done in choosing our new Pope. Today, the Diocese of Arlingtons Communications team will reflect on the legacy of His Holiness Benedict VXI, Pope Emeritus, and relate how he personally touched our lives. Please feel free to discuss how Benedict influenced your faith in the comments below.
Seeing Benedict strolling the grounds of Castel Gandolfo makes me realize how influential he was to me as a young Catholic and how his particular style of communication compelled me to delve deeper into my faith. I had hesitations about his election; the media described him as Gods Rottweiler, after all. How could I connect on a personal level to someone I perceived as a staunch and rigid Cardinal; we disagreed on modern issues from rock and roll to Harry Potter! I didnt really feel he was the right person to lead the Church during such uncertain times, especially not when the very principles of the Church were being ridiculed by society and media as bigoted and uncharitable. I thought that such a dogmatic and unyielding leader, in my opinion, couldnt bring the Church together. Yet that was exactly what Benedict did.
Even so, I was happy to have a Pope from Germany, the country of my heritage, and it was particularly delightful to see him in Rome, where, for the first time, I began to read his writings and was amazed at his deep love and invitations to everyone from saint to sinner. Seeing him celebrate the Easter Vigil Mass after reading his encyclical Deus Caritas Est helped me to remove the beam from my own eye in order to see more clearly and without negative judgments. In his papacy, Benedict strove to connect to Catholics, especially young adults, and constantly surprised us by adopting new communications platforms like Twitter. He was one of the oldest elected Popes, but his messages werent outdated and his efforts were robust. Even to the end of his papacy, Benedict constantly reached out towards his Church and encouraged us through love. His papacy was, especially for me, inspiring and renewing as he guided the Church back to Christ. Love is possible, and we are able to practise it because we are created in the image of God. To experience love and in this way to cause the light of God to enter into the worldthis is the invitation I would like to extend with the present Encyclical (Deus Caritas Est, 39).
My clearest memory of Pope Benedict XVI is burned into my memory partly because I was literally getting burned in the sun while waiting for a Papal Audience to begin. While I had the blessing of being able to see and hear Pope Benedict a number of times while I was in graduate school at a Pontifical University in Rome for several years, on this day I was sitting up on a dais only 15 feet from the Holy Father.
Why did I get to sit up front with the dignitaries and VIPs? Because my well-connected friend knew that on that very day my grandmother was being buried in the United States and that I was the only family member unable to be at her funeral. You see, he knew my affection for Benedict a wise shepherd who was like a scholarly, loving grandfather. I was continually struck by our former popes clarity in teaching, his obvious humility and his simple love for God and for beauty. That day I couldnt be with my earthly family, but I felt so intimately the connection with the Church as I sat at the feet of the Holy Father.
At the end of the audience, Pope Benedict gave the audience attendees and their families a blessing. My grandmother always said that she thought that Heaven would look like St. Peters. But on that day, with the always sincere Pope Benedict extending his blessing to my grieving parent, siblings and cousins, St. Peters looked like home and the Holy Father seemed like family.
This article has been reprinted here by permission of the author after original publication at Encourage and Teach, published by the Diocese of Arlington. comments powered by Disqus


- The Word
- Prayer
- Contributors
- Father Edward Horkan
- Stu Nolan
- Father Jerry Pokorsky
- Msgr. Charles Pope
- Father Paul Scalia
- In the Spotlight
- Acton PowerBlog
- Bench Memos
- Father Boquet
- Catholic Thing
- First Things
- LifeSite News
- Father Longenecker
- National Catholic Register
- Ed Peters
- Monsignor Pope
- Father Spitzer
- Truth & Charity Forum
- Faithful Commentary
- Papal Audiences
- Adoremus
- Atonement
- Big Pulpit
- Blue Hermit
- Cabrini Center
- Catholic Answers
- Catholic Vote
- Courageous Priest
- Crisis
- Curt Jester
- Father DeCelles
- Digital Nun
- Dominicana
- Encourage & Teach
- To Find Fruit
- Father Cassian Folsom
- Friars of Renewal
- Inst. for Catholic Culture
- Just A Brother
- Liturgy Reflections
- Kathryn Lopez
- New Advent
- Path of Life
- Patrick Madrid
- Magis Center
- Nun Blog
- Nun Speak
- Pauline Faithways
- Father Percy
- Pilgrim & Priest
- Sr. Rose at Movies
- Spiritual Exercises
- Whosoever Desires
- Windows to the Soul
- World Report
- WorldWatch
- More Faithful Commentary
- Directory
- + New Additions
- + By Clergy
- + By Consecrated
- Glorious Streaming
- Air Maria
- EWTN
- Fr. James Farfaglia
- Journey Home
- We Are One Body
- Holy Devotions
- Eucharistic Adoration
- Marian Consecration
- BVM, Flame of Love
- Virtual Pilgrimage
- Virtual Vatican
- Holy Pursuits
- Scripture Reading Plan
- Family Catechism
- Catechism Reading Plan
- Lenten Reading Plan
- Reflections
- Holy Treasure
- Search Scripture
- Search Catechism
- Church Fathers
- Encyclicals
- Encyclopedia
- Summa Theologica
- Library
- American Philosophy
- Magna Carta
- Va Declaration of Rights
- Decl. of Independence
- The Constitution
- Bill of Rights
- Fed. Judiciary Act 1789
- Edmund Burke
- + on Revolution
- Charles de Montesquieu
- + on Spirit of Laws
- Federalist Papers
- Anti-Federalist Papers
- The Founding Fathers
- Alexis de Tocqueville
- + Democracy in America
- The National Debt
- Debt Clock
- Religious Liberty
- Alliance Defense
- Becket Fund
- + "Unacceptable"
- + Mandate Info
- Thomas More Law Center
- The Culture of Life
- etherScout Search Tool
- Faithful Scouts
- Human Life International
- + Talking Points
- Life Decisions International
- LifeSiteNews
- Spirit & Life
- Truth & Charity Forum
- WitnessWorks Foundation
- World Report
- WorldWatch
- Holy Orders
- Adoration Sisters
- Byzantines
- Daughters of Charity
- Daughters of Divine Hope
- Daughters of Divine Zeal
- Daughters of St. Paul
- Norbertines
- Our Lady Immaculate
- Passionists
- PIME Missionaries
- Salesians
- + Scriptural Reflections
- Salesians Don Bosco
- Sisters of Poor
- Seminarians' Dictionary
- + Benedictines
- Sisters
- Nuns
- Arkansas
- Idaho
- Kansas
- North Carolina
- Pennsylvania
- + Carmelites
- Sisters
- Sister Helena
- + Dominicans
- Preaching Friars
- Alabama
- California
- District of Columbia
- + The Thomist
- New Jersey
- New York
- Texas
- + Franciscans
- Felicians
- Capuchin
- Marians of Immaculate
- Mercedarian
- Poor Clares
- Renewal
- Readings for Today
- Spirituality
- Vocations
- Arizona
- Illinois (Alton)
- Illinois (Chicago)
- Illinois 3rd Order
- Maine
- New York
- Texas
- Wisconsin
- + Jesuits
- Society of Jesus
- + Trappists
- Trappists (CA)
- Trappists (MS)
WitnessWorks Foundation
For a Culture of Life
4 Family Life Lane
Front Royal, VA 22630
Facebook