Religion, always a sensitive issue, whether it concerns a single person or entire populations and especially where it appears to blend - naturally or not - with other widespread issues such a politics, finance or media.
Ever since the Holy See has been treatied into the Vatican State (less than 100 years ago), it would appear that, paradoxly enough, the Roman Catholic Church definitly ceased being the party to international politics it was over so many centuries and thus commenced being fairly exclusively dedicated to the human element of religion, a mission that resulted in the institutionalization of many foundations and charities, including the Banco or Instituto per le Opere Religione in the midst of world war II, in addition to, of course, the supremacy role it amost always has held towards thousands of international religous orders. An intriguing organization, loved, admired, envied by many.
No one will ever know for certain why Joseph Ratzinger decided to step down as Pope as much as we really know what made him sought to become elected Sumo Pontifice by the College of Cardinals. The fact that he (ambitiously) chose to succeed Pope Benedict XV should tell us something.
Is it a step of (inevitable) modernity, like many people would like to believe, that there will be a different and more popular and / or active role for the Holy See in a more individualistic yet inter-connected world ? I am not convinced this would require a Prada cased I-phoning Clooney or Obama look-alike, jogging over the Via della Conciliazone, every morning.
Or could there be chrystalising retrocessive effects of relative recent history as we see so many jurisctions and institutions go through these days ? Let's face it, the Vatican has not been immune to various scandals, moral or worse, some more transparently overcome than others. Then again, part of what makes the Holy See the institute it is, has been its ability to overcome many external and internal threats.
I wonder how many Wi-Fi spots there are at Monte Cassino for whom wants to keep a silent track of what's next.
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