“The resignation of popes cannot become a fashion”, warns Francis

Pope Francis opined that although Benedict XVI did so, “this by no means means that the resignations of popes should become a kind of fad.” He said this in a meeting with Jesuits on his recent trip to Africa and the transcript of which was published this Thursday by the magazine of the Society of Jesus, Catholic civilization.

The pontiff made the clarification during a meeting with Jesuits from the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan, who asked him about the matter during his recent visit.

Francis confirmed that, two months after his election, he had written a letter to the then Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarciso Bertone, with your resignation in case of health problems.

“It is true that I wrote my resignation two months after the elections and I gave this letter to Cardinal Bertone. I don’t know where the letter is. I did it in case I had a health problem that prevented me from exercising my ministry and I’m not fully aware of the resignation,” he clarified.

“However, this does not mean at all that the resignations of popes should become something like a fad, something normal. Benedetto had the courage to do it because he didn’t want to continue because of his health. agenda for the moment”, remarked the Argentine pontiff on African soil.

Finally, Francis visited the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan between the end of January and the beginning of February, a tour he had to postpone last year due to knee problems, which forced him to use a chair on wheels.

sent for life

“I don’t have it on the agenda right now. I believe that the Pope’s ministry is ad vitam. I see no reason why it shouldn’t. Remember that the ministry of great patriarchs is always for life. And historical tradition is important. If, on the contrary, we have listened to the ‘gossip’, then we should change the Pope every six months!” Jorge Bergoglio added.

Regarding the letter of resignation, he also explained that Pius XII had already done so “as a precaution in case Hitler took him to Germany” and “in that case he said they would have captured Eugenio Pacelli and not the pope”.

Francisco also spoke about the position of the superior general of the Society of Jesus, which is pro-life and he was in favor of it continuing to be.

“Yes, I’m a conservative in this. He must be alive. But obviously the same question arises with regard to the Pope. Father Kolvenbach and Father Nicholas, the last two former superiors general, have left him for health reasons. It is also important for me to remember that one of the reasons why the generalate in the Company is for life is to avoid electoral calculations, factions, gossip”.

The death of pope emeritus Benedict XVI last December 31 has once again triggered hypotheses about a possible resignation of Francisco, now that he would have no impediments, but the Argentine pontiff has recently made it clear that he maintains his plans for the future.

Rumors of a possible resignation have increased since last year due to the mobility problems the pontiff is suffering.

He has a knee injury and is unable to undergo surgery due to the risks of a new application of general anesthesia, which arose after an operation on his large intestine in 2021.

Source: EFE and ANSA