quote: Originally posted by: gypsyfreak "How sad. I never realized his condition was really serious."
It sounds like they missed the infection he had and caught it to late. My mom said if they would have caught it sooner they might have been able to help him get better but he is suffering from so many things it may be best. Fox news was talking about what happens next and its pretty interesting - with picking the next pope - not that I want to kill him off so I can see it.
quote: Originally posted by: lsubatgirl "Fox news was talking about what happens next and its pretty interesting - with picking the next pope - not that I want to kill him off so I can see it."
I know, I remember when he was first elected, waiting for the smoke that had been black for days (I think days, I was so small) becoming white...
It's sad b/c he has been ill for a while, and his "job" is not an easy one. I am not sure there is the possibility to "resign" or something like that, but I have been thinking for some years now that he should have given up and just take care of his health.
And it would be interesting to see whom would be chosen next. But then it would mean that this Pope is dead!
quote: Originally posted by: ico " I am not sure there is the possibility to "resign" or something like that, but I have been thinking for some years now that he should have given up and just take care of his health. And it would be interesting to see whom would be chosen next. But then it would mean that this Pope is dead! "
I never thought a pope could resign. I mean doesn't he represent God on Earth? I thought it was a lifetime appointment until you died which is what I believe. I know recently they have been trying to get him to resign but I just don't know.
Me and my mom were talking the other day when they first mentioned the fact he wanted a feeding tube and possibly life support. What do you do then? Who would dare to pull the plug on the pope?
this is really interesting (and sad) in light of the hoopla concerning schiavo. i'm not catholic so forgive my ignorance, but my understanding is that a new pope can't be selected until the old pope dies. so what do you think will happen if the pope ends up needing life support? i'm thinking it's not going to be like schiavo where the person can live indefinitely (since her body was healthy, but his isn't). but i'm wondering what the church would do if the pope ends up being on life support for 6+ months. do you think they'll just pick another pope, or do they have to wait for him to officially die?
quote: Originally posted by: honey " do you think they'll just pick another pope, or do they have to wait for him to officially die? "
They have to wait for him to die before picking another. He isn't going to a hospital and I think its because he knows he's dying. Most doctors have said on tv that people with his problem (the heart failure, shock, and infection) don't usually last more than a few days with it. If he was on life support though for 6 months or so they wouldn't name another pope but the second in command or whatever its called would just step in and act for the pope .
This is interesting that its been brought up because my church had been planning for a few months to have a guest speaker (a priest from our area) come and talk about what happens in this situation and how the new pope will be chosen. I know my parents will be going so I'll have to ask them about it since its this coming up Monday.
The thing is pretty complicated, as after the Pope dies some people maintain their position while others will be chosen by the new pope.
The "Carmelengo" (Eduardo MArtinez Somalo at this moment) will have the responsibility to take care of the affairs of the Vatican until the new Pope is elected, but he can only deal with routine administrative tasks, he can't take any decisions that are the sesponsibility of the Pope himself
Yeah. Apparently all the Cardinals in the world go to the Vatican after his death and meet and they come up with possible replacements and vote on it. A few years ago they had in my paper an article about the possible replacements. It was pretty interesting.