Pope Benedict XVI Resignation Catches Concord Pastors by Surprise

When Pope Benedict XVI resigned last week, it was a shocking announcement for many and as some in the media noted, historically significant. For the first time in nearly six centuries, a pope has resigned rather than stay on in power until he has passed on.

Father Raymond Potvin of Immaculate Conception Church in Penacook said that after the announcement, he went back and looked into the history of voluntary resignations and could only find two: Gregory XII, in the 1400s, and Celestine V in the 1200s. There have been other resignations too, but not voluntary.

Potvin said the resignation would have historians wondering for years how the church deals with a newly elevated pope in the wake of the previous pope still being alive since it was such unusual occurrence

“How do you deal with a living retirement pope?,” he wondered. “We haven’t had this in our own age. What protocol does he have? I think it’s going to be very interesting to see.”

Father Richard Roberge of the Christ the King Parish, the collection of Catholic churches on the west side of the city, said the resignation “was a surprise to everybody” adding that he had a lot of respect for Benedict.

“I can understand,” Roberge said. “He was seen as the law enforcer … he projected a more pastoral approach which is the reality. It’s like going from AG to governor.”

Roberge called Benedict “a highly intellectual and gifted man” and added that it was “a humbling thing” to relinquish “the most powerful position in the church.” He has met him previously and imagined that Benedict realized that someone else needed to take over the church especially when considering the responsibilities of the job.

“The guy’s brilliant,” he said. “He listens to people … he’s just amazing.”

Potvin agreed but added that Benedict might not have had confidence in the people around him in his waning years since he had only been in the job about eight years. He noted that Pope John Paul II had been pope for so long, he had “a tremendous confidence and ability for the people he put in office and that they could handle the responsibility.” While Benedict had the right to step down, he said John Paul seemed to realize that he had contributions to make and that by staying in, “there was merit in suffering … we offer our suffering for the good of the church and he lived that out for the world to see … that was his way of doing things. He lived what he wrote,” he said of John Paul.

Both Roberge and Potvin talked about the heavy responsibility of the job, with Roberge adding that people are mistaken to see the pope as just a Catholic figurehead.

“It’s an awesome amount of responsibility,” Roberge said. “The daily schedule alone … these guys are meeting with people all the time, all over the world … it’s a modern day pope.”

Roberge added, “The itinerary is brutal. There are parades, meetings, homilies … I’m tired after the weekend,” he said, laughing. “It doesn’t end … it takes a lot stamina.”

Potvin agreed.

“Every bishop has to go to Rome every five years and they generally go in blocks,” he said. “The pope meets with them every day … they celebrate mass together, from all over the world. If you can’t bare it, if you don’t have stamina, you can’t stay on."

Potvin added, “I think, in this country, we see the pope on TV when there is a mass going on and we think, ‘What an easy life.’ But there is a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes.”

Neither Potvin nor Roberge think parishioners will be concerned about the time Catholics will have without a pope.

“When you look at history of the church, another one goes another one comes and the church is always there,” Potvin said. “I don’t think people are going to be shaken or concerned.”

“I think they were surprised but I don’t think … it’s not something I sense will be of concern,” Roberge said. “The church is more than 2,000 years old. It’s in God’s hands. I’m sure there will be some that will grieve of the loss of this intellectual. There will be different elements in the church, both liberal and conservative, who will speculate, on television about the future too.”