Friday, June 03, 2005
THE SOURCE OF BENEDICT'S NAME
Michael Rose has linked this opinion piece by Victoria Donovan over at the Crux blog. Her conclusion sounds accurate as the reason our new Pope picked the name Benedict.
The prospect of the EU and the Vatican pursuing a common moral ground in Europe seems unlikely and the potential conflicts on the horizon with the question of Turkey’s membership will do little to improve relations. The diverging paths of political and religious Europe have not gone unnoticed by the new pontiff and his choice of papal name seems to have a particular significance in the light of these developments. It was St Benedict who, when faced with the decay of the Roman Empire and the onslaught of the Barbarians, retreated to establish hilltop monasteries which later became the foundations of European Christendom. Faced with the dwindling influence of the Church and indifference to the Christian faith which characterises much of Europe, the new pope seems to be following in the footsteps of his namesake, calling for Catholics to strengthen their core as a “creative minority in Europe” and establish a more reflective community within a decadent continent.
