Actually, when John Paul II died, I found that out on espn.com. I remember that well. It was a Saturday and everybody knew the end was near, but I first saw the news of his death on espn.com in my room in St. Ed's. I hadn't planned on going to mass that night for Sunday, but then I knew I had to. I went to the 5:00 mass at the basilica and it was packed. While it was exciting to be electing a new pope for the first time in my life, it was incredibly sad to lose John Paul II. I remember waking up at some ridiculous hour to watch his funeral. I recently said in my Washington's Birthday post that George Washington was the greatest man in the world in the eighteenth century. Without hesitation, I would say that John Paul II was the greatest man in the world in the twentieth century. That's saying something when you consider how big of a Winston Churchill fan I am. (Interesting question: Who was the greatest man in the world in the nineteenth century? Was it Lincoln? As great as he was, his influence seems limited to the United States, unlike Washington, who inspired people to fight for freedom in other countries as well.) I consider myself incredibly fortunate to have lived the first 21 years of my life with John Paul the Great as pope. I would definitely name a son after him (which isn't going to happen because God is giving me all girls).
Anyway, I'm pretty excited about electing a new pope. This is only the second time during my life that this has happened. Unlike last time, we don't have the sadness of the pope's death attached to electing a new pope. The pope resigning is quite historic as it hadn't happened since before Christopher Columbus was born. I find presidential elections really exciting, but it's easy to be disappointed by the result. No matter who the next pope is, I won't be disappointed.
I've been waiting for a Cousin Sal-Bill Simmons podcast going over the odds on the next pope. That's not happening, so that's why I'm here. This is purely for entertainment purposes. I'm anti-gambling to begin with, but if you bet on who the next pope is going to be, you really deserve to lose money.
Let's start with the pope's name. I would love it if we had a Pope James, but that is extremely unlikely as we have never had a Pope James. I think it's a solid choice for a pope since two of the twelve apostles were named James, but John Paul I is the only pope in 1000 years or so to be original with a name. I was curious when the last time we had a pope that didn't have the name of a prior pope before John Paul I. The answer is Pope Lando who was pope for about six months in 913 and 914 (and he didn't take a new name). Apparently the favorite for the name is Peter. I'd be really surprised if that happened since we've never had a Peter II. So if we're being more realistic about what the next pope's name might be, I'd be rooting for John Paul III or John XXIV.
Also of significance is where the next pope will come from. The favorite in that category is Italy. For 455 years from Pope Adrian VI (from the Low Countries) to Pope John Paul II (Poland), Italy would have been correct.. I would definitely take the field over Italy this time. We've had two straight non-Italian popes and my guess is that this time we'll have a non-European pope. I wouldn't be surprised if it's somebody from Asia, Africa, or South America. A non-European would be quite historical. It's only been 1272 years since the last non-European pope (Gregory III from Syria). The favorite is a Ghanan (Ghanian? Ghananian?), Cardinal Turkson. Next comes an Italian, Cardinal Scola, and a Canadian, Cardinal Ouellet. Cardinal Dolan is the American with the best odds (14th on the list), but it would be shocking if an American was the next pope. It will be very interesting to see what happens.
I've been waiting for a Cousin Sal-Bill Simmons podcast going over the odds on the next pope. That's not happening, so that's why I'm here. This is purely for entertainment purposes. I'm anti-gambling to begin with, but if you bet on who the next pope is going to be, you really deserve to lose money.
Let's start with the pope's name. I would love it if we had a Pope James, but that is extremely unlikely as we have never had a Pope James. I think it's a solid choice for a pope since two of the twelve apostles were named James, but John Paul I is the only pope in 1000 years or so to be original with a name. I was curious when the last time we had a pope that didn't have the name of a prior pope before John Paul I. The answer is Pope Lando who was pope for about six months in 913 and 914 (and he didn't take a new name). Apparently the favorite for the name is Peter. I'd be really surprised if that happened since we've never had a Peter II. So if we're being more realistic about what the next pope's name might be, I'd be rooting for John Paul III or John XXIV.
Also of significance is where the next pope will come from. The favorite in that category is Italy. For 455 years from Pope Adrian VI (from the Low Countries) to Pope John Paul II (Poland), Italy would have been correct.. I would definitely take the field over Italy this time. We've had two straight non-Italian popes and my guess is that this time we'll have a non-European pope. I wouldn't be surprised if it's somebody from Asia, Africa, or South America. A non-European would be quite historical. It's only been 1272 years since the last non-European pope (Gregory III from Syria). The favorite is a Ghanan (Ghanian? Ghananian?), Cardinal Turkson. Next comes an Italian, Cardinal Scola, and a Canadian, Cardinal Ouellet. Cardinal Dolan is the American with the best odds (14th on the list), but it would be shocking if an American was the next pope. It will be very interesting to see what happens.
No comments:
Post a Comment