“Pope Benedict has announced that
he is resigning.” Mother M. Regina Pacis spoke these words on February 11, 2013
at 6:00 a.m. just before we started Holy Mass. These are the words that bolted
me awake on a morning when I was severely struggling to stay awake during Morning
Office and meditation. I was completely
shocked. Of all the announcements I may
have been expecting, this one was not on my radar.
As my day continued, I started to process
this shock and what it meant for the Church and for myself. At the age of 27, I have only known two Popes
within my life. The first is my patron, Pope John Paul II. The second is Pope
Benedict XVI. Both of these men have had a profound impact on the world and
within my own life.
In 2002, at age 16, I traveled to
Toronto for World Youth Day (WYD), Pope John Paul II’s last. I was a typical
small-town, public-school teenager involved with sports, music, and academics.
In between all of this I also crammed my faith in. I was aware of my local
Church area and had an idea of what it meant to be part of the Diocese of La
Crosse and how we were interconnected as a large Church body within the whole
world. It was in Toronto that one, holy, apostolic, and Catholic became more
than Church marks that I had memorized for Confirmation. It was here that I really
began to understand what it meant to be part of the universal Church. Here
there were thousands of people on fire for their faith, most of them young. We
all spoke different languages and came from countries ranging from the U.S to Canada
to France to Korea to Brazil and beyond. Despite our differences and because of
our shared faith which united us on a much deeper level, we were able to
communicate.
Looming above all these people was
Pope John Paul II. I knew who he was and the role that he played within the
Church, yet I never really thought much beyond these facts. In Toronto, I grew
to realize that he really was a shepherd and a father to all of us within the
Church. Here was a man who was extremely frail due to age and illness; yet, one
would never realize it by the way he reached out to each person there. One man
with no discernible fame in the common usage of the word could set a vast crowd
cheering for him yelling out “JPII, we love you.” His response was, “John Paul loves you, too.”
He was one who showed us what it meant to love Christ, to love God’s people and
his Church, and not count the cost.
In March/April of 2005, I was a
college freshman. I remember quite clearly following the news and waiting to hear
that my beloved Pope had died. It was with a profound sense of sadness and one
of love that I was listening to all that was happening. When Pope Benedict was
elected and I heard that WYD in Cologne would still be taking place I wondered
what the difference would be. In Germany, with our new Pope, the atmosphere was
much the same. I could still look out and wonder at the universal Church in
action. Once again, among all the people gathered, the Pope stood out. One knew that he was the shepherd and father
of the universal Church and that he embraced his role with great love and
concern for his flock.
At WYD 2008 I felt Pope Benedict,
as Christ’s vicar and spokesman, really speaking to my heart. It was here at
the closing Mass that he said the words, “One mission is better than a thousand
options.” I had just finished my fourth year of college, having jumped around a
bit and changed majors. I was fighting God about a religious vocation. On one
hand, I knew I was called and had begun to realize the beauty of religious
life. On the other hand, I was still clinging to the idea of doing things my
way, even if I was not completely satisfied. It was these words that really
helped me to embrace the truth that living and loving God’s Will in my life was
better than any option I could conceive on my own, no matter how I might
justify it.
Pope Benedict has given the Church
much during his time in the office of Pope. He has endured many trials while
remaining firmly grounded in and courageously preaching our faith. During his
time, he has left us a treasury of teaching to unfold. His Angelus message of 2/10/13 proclaims: “It is the work of God. Man is not the
author of his own vocation, but he replies to the divine proposal; and human
weakness must not trouble us if God calls. We must have confidence in His
strength, which acts precisely in our poverty; we must more and more place our
trust in the power of His mercy, which transforms and renews.” Our Holy Father
was speaking of vocations to the priesthood and religious life but to me this
is also a commentary for the whole Church.
It is in God’s hands that the
Church and her people lie. Though we may not always understand God’s workings,
we have confidence in His plan. Reflecting upon Pope Benedict’s resignation, I
was sad but also grateful for his work and his docility to God. I received it
in confidence, knowing that the Church is guided by the Holy Spirit.
- Sister Karol Marie, FSGM
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