Pope Francis - will he retire?

[Blue3]

He has spoken of eventually retiring ever since he became Pope.

Some think there are new signs it might happen in the next year or two.

Thoughts?

https://apnews.com/article/pope-francis-benedict-xvi-religion-2186d6d10d27c67d5154197e50fc590e

[HillGoose]

wouldn't his retirement void Saint Malachy's prophecy tho? then the world will never end

[World politics is up Schmitt creek]

wouldn't his retirement void Saint Malachy's prophecy tho? then the world will never end

Based.

Anyway, it's possible. It's also possible the tea leaves are being misread. The Vatican is remarkably opaque even for an old, powerful, Italian bureaucracy, and we're at a point where there are plausible arguments to be made both for and against a "mission accomplished" read on the Francis pontificate.

[Illiniwek]

I think that could very well happen. If travel is getting more and more difficult for him, I could see him believing the best thing he could do is to allow someone more able to take his place while he spends his remaining years committed to a life of prayer.

[Person Man]

And if he doesn't?

[World politics is up Schmitt creek]

And if he doesn't?

If he doesn't then we'll just have a physically decrepit Pope for a while, which isn’t unheard of; John Paul II's Parkinson's was, towards the end, much worse than Francis's mobility issues are now.

[Person Man]

And if he doesn't?

If he doesn't then we'll just have a physically decrepit Pope for a while, which isn’t unheard of; John Paul II's Parkinson's was, towards the end, much worse than Francis's mobility issues are now.

I mean, if he dies in office, there would be people who would apparently read into it certain things. Whether it comes and goes or becomes the next crazy things we have to hear is anyone’s guess. People are already crazier than sh**thouse rats.

[LabourJersey]

I don't think he'd retire until Benedict is dead, quite frankly.

I know at the beginning of his papacy Francis mentioned he would consider abdication, but I think that was under the assumption that most people had that Benedict was near death. Nine years later and he's still around, and there's still a decent number of people close to Benedict in the Vatican (how much I don't know, I'm not an expert by literally any stretch of the imagination).

I think having a Pope Emeritus is weird enough for people in the Vatican--having two is a different story. Add that to the fact that contrary to the Pope movie, I'm pretty sure Francis and Benedict dislike each other and may not want to spend their last years sharing Papal spaces or splitting whatever homes the Pope's estate would give to them.

[brucejoel99]

I think having a Pope Emeritus is weird enough for people in the Vatican--having two is a different story. Add that to the fact that contrary to the Pope movie, I'm pretty sure Francis and Benedict dislike each other and may not want to spend their last years sharing Papal spaces or splitting whatever homes the Pope's estate would give to them.

The Two Popes was obviously a work of fiction, but Francis & Benedict already live in adjacent proximity to each other & are said to be on legitimately good & friendly terms with one another, so I don't see that being a part of the consideration. (The weirdness of having 3 living Popes at once, on the other hand...)

[LabourJersey]

I think having a Pope Emeritus is weird enough for people in the Vatican--having two is a different story. Add that to the fact that contrary to the Pope movie, I'm pretty sure Francis and Benedict dislike each other and may not want to spend their last years sharing Papal spaces or splitting whatever homes the Pope's estate would give to them.

The Two Popes was obviously a work of fiction, but Francis & Benedict already live in adjacent proximity to each other & are said to be on legitimately good & friendly terms with one another, so I don't see that being a part of the consideration. (The weirdness of having 3 living Popes at once, on the other hand...)

Is this part actually true, though? Cause the things I've read imply otherwise. Though it's possible that Benedict's people and Francis's people are the ones that genuinely despise one another, and not the two Popes themselves

[World politics is up Schmitt creek]

I think having a Pope Emeritus is weird enough for people in the Vatican--having two is a different story. Add that to the fact that contrary to the Pope movie, I'm pretty sure Francis and Benedict dislike each other and may not want to spend their last years sharing Papal spaces or splitting whatever homes the Pope's estate would give to them.

The Two Popes was obviously a work of fiction, but Francis & Benedict already live in adjacent proximity to each other & are said to be on legitimately good & friendly terms with one another, so I don't see that being a part of the consideration. (The weirdness of having 3 living Popes at once, on the other hand...)

Is this part actually true, though? Cause the things I've read imply otherwise. Though it's possible that Benedict's people and Francis's people are the ones that genuinely despise one another, and not the two Popes themselves

That is the case.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

I doubt it they don't need two retired Popes