7 April 2013
RELIGION: A new pope becomes head of the Roman Catholic Church.
By Aysouda Malekzadeh, News Editor
For the first time in 600 years, a pope has resigned from the Roman Catholic Church. Due to health issues, 85 year-old Pope Benedict XVI chose to step down from his position, stating that his “strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise in the Petrine ministry.”
Taking his place as the new pope is 76-year-old Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who will be called Francis, the 266th pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church. Francis, a cardinal from Argentina, is the first South American chosen to lead the church. By choosing Francis, the cardinals indicated that the future of the church lies in the global south, which holds most of the world’s Catholics.
“I’m happy that the pope was finally chosen from somewhere other than Europe. I think that it’s nice for other regions to be recognized. However, I had hoped that they would pick someone a little younger who more people would be able to relate to,” Poly student Emma Cunningham (12) said.
Francis, who has been the archbishop of Buenos Aires since 1998, is known as a humble man who speaks out for the poor. He has been a cardinal since 2001 and, as the new pope, he faces a plethora of challenges left by his predecessor such as the shortage of priests, the growing competition from the evangelical churches in the Southern Hemisphere and the sexual abuse crisis that has undermined the church’s moral authority in the West.
The new pope holds traditional, doctrinal and conservative views. Francis opposes liberation theology, abortion, gay marriage and the ordination of women.
“I feel that the new pope is very humble. Unlike Pope Benedict, Pope Francis came out in his white robe to first greet the people, showing that he is a much simpler man,” Poly student and Vice President of the Catholic Club, Carolina Abundis (11), said.
Contributed By cbsnews.com