Papal resignation unlikely: Experts surprise with forecasts

Papal resignation unlikely: Experts surprise with forecasts

as Benedict XVI. The Catholic Church shook this as the first Pope for 600 years. Now, two weeks after his stay in the Pope Franziskus could also resign.

Health of Pope Francis

"" I think the only circumstances under which he (Francis) would consider resigning, as he said if he suffered from a long -term degenerative or weakening illness that makes it impossible to fully execute the Papal Office, "Austen Icegh, a biographer of the Pope, told Cnn.

The Pope was on Friday because of a sudden breathing noise Vatican announced. The incident was complicated by vomiting, which the Pope was partially affected. A source in the Vatican said on Friday that the next 24 to 48 hours will be decisive to determine whether the Pope's health has deteriorated. On Saturday morning it was said that Franziskus calm and spent a peaceful night.

the Pope and the possibilities of a withdrawal

A resignation from the papal office is not comparable to the withdrawal from a corporate president or CEO. There are no term of office or a board of directors; It is an office regarded as lifelong. For Catholics, the Pope is the successor of St. Peter and performs an office given by Jesus Christ himself. Nevertheless, the papacy is also an office, and progress in modern medicine and increasing life expectancy have created new scenarios. It also remains unclear how long the 88-year-old Pope will stay in the hospital and what his long-term forecast looks like.

ivereigh emphasized that the age or frailty of the Pope is not an obstacle, nor does the Catholic Church want to create a precedent that a Pope has to resign from a certain age or state of health. In addition, the biographer explained that this Pope is "fully committed" and did not want a drastically reduced pope service.

memories of Benedict XVI. And the implications for Franziskus

This week, memories of the dramatic day, when Benedict XVI, was born as Joseph Ratzinger, announced on February 11, 2013 that he resigned. This happened during a supposedly routine cardinal meeting - a consistory - to vote on beatification procedures. At the end of this meeting, the German Pope began to speak to Latin and shocked those present with the notification of his resignation. Some cardinals leaned together to ask if they had understood it correctly.

parallels to Benedict resignation were drawn when the Vatican announced on Tuesday that Francis had called a consistory at an unspecified time to check candidates for the beatification. This happened during a meeting in the hospital, where he came together with some of his highest officials, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the State Secretary of State, and Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, the factual boss of the Pope.

The challenges during the pontificate

"After the surprise of Ratzinger's resignation, consistories have now become highly political in certain difficult times of the church," said Marco Politi, a respected Vatican commentator and author of a new book on the pontificate of Francis entitled "The unfinished". "I believe that the Pope is currently focusing on surviving the crisis and completing the anniversary year. On his 89th birthday, he will be forced to ask himself whether he is still able to keep the church." The Catholic Church is located in the middle of a one -year anniversary celebration, an event that traditionally takes place every 25 years.

Francis likes to keep people busy and knew that the announcement of the consistory would trigger a lot of speculation. It is unlikely that the Pope wanted to disclose his cards in such a big decision.

freedom and the possibility of withdrawal

"For Francis, freedom to assess these questions is absolutely," said Ivereigh. Freedom is important, because according to canon law, the Pope's resignation must be "freely and properly expressed" and must not be "accepted by someone". A Pontifex must not be under external pressure or compulsion when deciding.

In the past, Francis said that the papacy was "ad vitam" (which means "to Latin" to the end of life ") and that resignation is not on his agenda. Nevertheless, he never ruled out to withdraw, and said that Benedikt's decision had the "door open" for future popes to retire.

A complain is called in the same way as it would happen after a resignation as with a papal death; However, Benedikt changed the law in 2013 to hold the choice faster.

The Argentine Pope has been driven by a deep feeling of the mission and has shown a determination since his hospital stay to recover, despite the fight against pneumonia in both lungs. Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the Foreign Minister of the Vatican, pointed out this week that the Pope's resignation is currently not up for debate and that Francis will do everything possible to recover.

"If it is God's will that he gets better, wonderful," said he towards America , a Catholic publication. "If it is God's will that he won't be, then he will accept it. This is the spirit of his life ..."

This Pope often surprises. And if Francis should actually step down, it is very likely that he would do this at a time when people are least expecting it.