Hello Steve,

>LL>White smoke!  White smoke!  The bells are ringing, and the crowd is
>LL>cheering!  A new pope has been elected!  Viva il Papa!  Long live
>LL>the Pope!

>LL>Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, from Germany, has been elected pope. No
>LL>longer a cardinal, he has taken the name Benedict XVI.

>LL>What kind of pontiff will Pope Benedict XVI be?  Here is a short
>LL>quote of what then Cardinal Ratzinger had to say on Monday, while
>LL>addressing the other cardinals just before being sequestered in the
>LL>Sistine Chapel -

>LL>"We are moving toward a dictatorship of relativism which does not
>LL>recognize anything as for certain and which has as its highest goal
>LL>one's own ego and one's own desires."

SA>I have a feeling we are moving toward a dictatorship of another kind,
SA>and that Pope Benedict XVI may be central in bringing it about. After
SA>his election comes the analysis of his ambitions, such as his pledge
SA>to work to unify all Christians and reach out to other religions.
SA>("New Pope Vows to Work to Unify Christians" - Associated Press)

It has long been a desire of popes for reunification with the
Orthodox church.  As well as better relations with other Christians,
along with Muslims and Jews.

SA>What will become of those Christians who do not unify with Rome?
SA>Revelation 17 gives a clue.

There are other clues, in the gospel.  Especially the accounts of
five loaves and two fishes, as well as of seven loaves and two fishes.
Those are really two different accounts, of different times.  One is
during the day, the other at night or at sunset.

>LL>Continuing, Ratzinger insisted the modern world had gone "...from
>LL>one extreme to the other: from Marxism to liberalism, even to
>LL>libertinism; from collectivism to radical individualism; from
>LL>atheism to a vague religious mysticism; from agnosticism to
>LL>syncretism."

>LL>Fighting words, to be sure.  But what does it all mean?  Ratzinger
>LL>apparently believes that Catholics are fighting a war against the
>LL>"dictatorship of relativism", and will seek to make that war
>LL>central to his mission, as well as the mission of Catholics
>LL>everywhere.

>LL>Unlike the late John Paul II, this new pope does not have a sunny
>LL>disposition.  The gift that Pope Benedict XVI has is the gift of
>LL>polemic - if one can call that a gift.  Yes, this new pope will act
>LL>the part of tough cop versus dissent.  While the late John Paul II
>LL>was never a disciplinarian, Pope Benedict XVI will be a stickler,
>LL>and crack down hard on those who break the rules.

>LL>Pope Benedict XVI is a very serious man, and also a great worrier.
>LL>But it fits his German nature.  While the late John Paul II said
>LL>"Be not afraid", this new pope says the church has much
to fear. I
>LL>dearly hope he was not referring to himself.

>LL>In any event, it will be interesting to see how Pope Benedict XVI
>LL>leads his church through that time of fear.  After all, these are
>LL>very trying times.  For the whole world.

SA>It is not described as "great tribulation" for nothing.

That may be what he was referring to, in an indirect way.

A few years ago, the Vatican released the third part of the secret
of Fatima.  Speaking for the pope, Ratzinger gave an interpretation
of what that part of the secret meant.  But he went on to say, quite
emphatically, that the Vatican had no official interpretation, further
saying the interpretation he gave was what JPII believed it to mean,
and that others are free to interpret the secret in their own way.

--Lee


 * SLMR 2.1a * All hope abandon, ye who enter messages here.
--- Platinum Xpress/Win/WINServer v3.0pr5