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Pope Benedict to Resign at the End of the Month — First to Do So in 600 Years

Feb. 11, 2013 6:26am Jonathon M. Seidl

Pope Benedict to Resign; Conclave in March

This file picture taken on December 31, 2012 shows Pope Benedict XVI arriving to pray in front of the nativity crib in Saint Peter’s Square after celebrating the Vespers and Te Deum prayers in Saint Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican. Pope Benedict XVI on February 11, 2013 announced he will resign on February 28, a Vatican spokesman told AFP, which will make him the first pope to do so in centuries. Credit: AFP/Getty Images

VATICAN CITY (TheBlaze/AP) — Pope Benedict XVI announced Monday that he would resign on Feb. 28 because he was simply too infirm to carry on – the first pontiff to do so in nearly 600 years. The decision sets the stage for a conclave to elect a new pope before the end of March.

The 85-year-old pope announced his decision in Latin during a meeting of Vatican cardinals on Monday morning.

He emphasized that carrying out the duties of being pope – the leader of more than a billion Roman Catholics worldwide – requires “both strength of mind and body.”

“After having repeatedly examined my conscience before God, I have come to the certainty that my strengths due to an advanced age are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine ministry,” he told the cardinals. “I am well aware that this ministry, due to its essential spiritual nature, must be carried out not only by words and deeds but no less with prayer and suffering.

“However, in today’s world, subject to so many rapid changes and shaken by questions of deep relevance for the life of faith, in order to govern the barque of St. Peter and proclaim the Gospel, both strength of mind and body are necessary – strengths which in the last few months, has deteriorated in me to the extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me.”

The last pope to resign was Pope Gregory XII, who stepped down in 1415 in a deal to end the Great Western Schism among competing papal claimants.

Benedict called his choice “a decision of great importance for the life of the church.”

The announcement did come as a surprise to many, including New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan. He was interviewed about it on the “Today” show and detailed his initial thoughts. He revealed that he wondered at first if it was just a rumor after getting a call from NBC’s Matt Lauer. That quickly gave way to confirmation:

“We did have fair warning, but at the same time since it is something that hasn’t happened in centuries, it always does comes as a surprise,” former Fox News reporter and Vatican spokesman Greg Burke told “Today.”

The move sets the stage for the Vatican to hold a conclave to elect a new pope by mid-March, since the traditional mourning time that would follow the death of a pope doesn’t have to be observed.

There are several papal contenders in the wings, but no obvious front-runner – the same situation when Benedict was elected pontiff in 2005 after the death of Pope John Paul II.

When Benedict was elected pope at age 78 – already the oldest pope elected in nearly 300 years – he had been already planning to retire as the Vatican’s chief orthodoxy watchdog to spend his final years writing in the “peace and quiet” of his native Bavaria.

Contenders to be his successor include Cardinal Angelo Scola, archbishop of Milan, Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, the archbishop of Vienna, and Cardinal Marc Ouellet, the Canadian head of the Vatican’s office for bishops.

Longshots include Dolan. But while Dolan is popular and backs the pope’s conservative line, the general thinking is that the Catholic Church doesn’t need a pope from a “superpower.” You can read TheBlaze’s detailed story on that from when Dolan was first named Cardinal here.

All cardinals under age 80 are allowed to vote in the conclave, the secret meeting held in the Sistine Chapel where cardinals cast ballots to elect a new pope. As per tradition, the ballots are burned after each voting round; black smoke that snakes out of the chimney means no pope has been chosen, while white smoke means a pope has been elected.

Popes are allowed to resign; church law specifies only that the resignation be “freely made and properly manifested.”

Only a handful have done so, however and there’s good reason why it hasn’t become commonplace: Might the existence of two popes – even when one has stepped down – lead to divisions and instability in the church? Might a new resignation precedent lead to pressures on future popes to quit at the slightest hint of infirmity?

Benedict himself raised the possibility of resigning if he were simply too old or sick to continue on in 2010, when he was interviewed for the book “Light of the World.”

“If a pope clearly realizes that he is no longer physically, psychologically and spiritually capable of handling the duties of his office, then he has a right, and under some circumstances, also an obligation to resign,” Benedict said.

The former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger had an intimate view as Pope John Paul II, with whom he had worked closely for nearly a quarter-century, suffered through the debilitating end of his papacy.

You can read the full text of the resignation announcement to the Cardinals below:

Dear Brothers,

I have convoked you to this Consistory, not only for the three canonizations, but also to communicate to you a decision of great importance for the life of the Church. After having repeatedly examined my conscience before God, I have come to the certainty that my strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine ministry. I am well aware that this ministry, due to its essential spiritual nature, must be carried out not only with words and deeds, but no less with prayer and suffering. However, in today’s world, subject to so many rapid changes and shaken by questions of deep relevance for the life of faith, in order to govern the barque of Saint Peter and proclaim the Gospel, both strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the last few months, has deteriorated in me to the extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me. For this reason, and well aware of the seriousness of this act, with full freedom I declare that I renounce the ministry of Bishop of Rome, Successor of Saint Peter, entrusted to me by the Cardinals on 19 April 2005, in such a way, that as from 28 February 2013, at 20:00 hours, the See of Rome, the See of Saint Peter, will be vacant and a Conclave to elect the new Supreme Pontiff will have to be convoked by those whose competence it is.

Dear Brothers, I thank you most sincerely for all the love and work with which you have supported me in my ministry and I ask pardon for all my defects. And now, let us entrust the Holy Church to the care of Our Supreme Pastor, Our Lord Jesus Christ, and implore his holy Mother Mary, so that she may assist the Cardinal Fathers with her maternal solicitude, in electing a new Supreme Pontiff. With regard to myself, I wish to also devotedly serve the Holy Church of God in the future through a life dedicated to prayer.

This is a breaking story. Updates will be added.

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Comments (414)

DavidZion
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:26am
Peter never went to Rome. Peter is NOT the rock Jesus built his Church on. You have to read what Jesus said before. The Rock is that Jesus is the son of God, The Christ: Christ is Greek for Annoited, anointed with the Holy Spirit.

17And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon (Peter) [s]Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18“I also say to you that you are [t]Peter, and upon this [u]rock (that Jesus is Gods son) I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

Interesting thing is Catholic prophecy says there is only one more Pope His name will be Peter the Roman

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- Beachmastermax
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 12:16pm
  “Peter” translates pebble. As you say, Christ is the Rock, The Foundation, the Chief Cornerstone (the stone that was rejected).
  
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- snooop1e
  Posted on February 12, 2013 at 11:45pm
  Whether Peter means pebble or rock is really irrelevant. Jesus chose that “Pebble” to build HIS church upon and Jesus chose that “Pebble” to give the KEYS TO THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. Whether Peter is a pebble (which in comparison to Jesus makes perfect sense) doesn’t change the fact that Jesus chose Peter to build His church upon and Jesus gave Peter the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven. Anyone who is being honest with themselves has to admit that whether Peter is a Rock or a Pebble has no bearing on the passage. Jesus chose Peter because Jesus is God and Jesus can do whatever He wants to do whether it makes sense to us or not or whether we like Peter or not. Jesus spoke Aramaic not Greek (that is why the verse was translated to Greek, if it was already Greek there would be no need to translate it right?) So assuming that Jesus really did call Peter a pebble does it really make any difference at all? Jesus said that He was building His church on Peter whether Peter is a pebble or a flea or a speck doesn’t really matter, what matters is that Jesus chose Peter to build His church upon and Jesus gave Peter and Peter alone the Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven. All of the “Pebble” argument does not cancel out what Jesus did. Not to mention most Biblical scholars dropped the pebble arguement a long time ago because it really is a silly argument that has no bearing on the passage and doesn’t change what Jesus said or did.
  
  PAX CHRISTI
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 13, 2013 at 11:43am
  …taken in context, [Scripture] nowhere declares that he was in authority over the other apostles, or over the church (having primacy). See Acts 15:1-23; Galatians 2:1-14; and 1 Peter 5:1-5. Nor is it ever taught in Scripture that the bishop of Rome, or any other bishop, was to have primacy over the church. Scripture does not even explicitly record Peter even being in Rome. Rather there is only one reference in Scripture of Peter writing from “Babylon,” a name sometimes applied to Rome (1 Peter 5:13). Primarily upon this and the historical rise of the influence of the Bishop of Rome come the Roman Catholic Church’s teaching of the primacy of the bishop of Rome. However, Scripture shows that Peter’s authority was shared by the other apostles (Ephesians 2:19-20), and the “loosing and binding” authority attributed to him was likewise shared by the local churches, not just their church leaders (see Matthew 18:15-19; 1 Corinthians 5:1-13; 2 Corinthians 13:10; Titus 2:15; 3:10-11). http://www.gotquestions.org/Peter-first-pope.html
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 13, 2013 at 11:46am
  Apostolic succession, combined with Peter’s supremacy among the apostles, results in the Roman bishop being the supreme authority of the Catholic Church – the Pope.
  
  However, nowhere in Scripture did Jesus, the apostles, or any other New Testament writer set forth the idea of “apostolic succession.” Further, neither is Peter presented as “supreme” over the other apostles. The apostle Paul, in fact, rebukes Peter when Peter was leading others astray (Galatians 2:11-14). Yes, the apostle Peter had a prominent role. Yes, perhaps the apostle Peter was the leader of the apostles (although the book of Acts records the apostle Paul and Jesus’ brother James as also having prominent leadership roles). Whatever the case, Peter was not the “commander” or supreme authority over the other apostles. Even if apostolic succession could be demonstrated from Scripture, which it cannot, apostolic succession would not result in Peter’s successors being absolutely supreme over the other apostles’ successors. http://www.gotquestions.org/apostolic-succession.html
  
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- snooop1e
  Posted on February 15, 2013 at 1:19pm
  According to your Exegesis Jesus told Peter that being the Son of God means Jesus is a Pebble and on that Pebble Jesus would build His church. Makes no sense, this is what happens when we try to twist Jesus words to fit man made doctrines, It just doesn’t work. The fabric of scripture is perfectly woven together by the Holy Spirit so that everything fits together PERFECTLY, there are no contradictions, there is no confusion, it’s only when we grasp one thread and pull it that the entire fabric becomes distorted. It is not possible to twist even one verse or passage of truth and have it not distort or contradict the other passages. In this regard Protest-ant theology is an either-or proposition whereas the truth of scripture is both-and. For instance God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son so that whoever should believe in Him might be saved AND Not everyone who calls Jesus Lord Lord will enter the kingdom of heave but ONLY those who DO the will of Jesus Father Who is in Heaven AND we are justified by what we DO and NOT by Faith Alone AND anyone who eats the bread and drinks the cup without recognizing the Body and Blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ eats and drinks condemnation upon himself AND If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left AND the CHURCH Is the Pillar and Bulwark of Truth. : )
  
  (Jn 3:16, Matt 7:21, Jm 2:24, 1 Cor 11:27-29, Heb 10:26, 1 Tim 3:15)
  
  PAX C
  
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TOPOFTHEGAME
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:22am
When the white smoke clears we will have{{{{{{{ Cardinal Peter K.A. Turkson }}}}}}}}}} as Pope Peter THE ????…. He will be the “”first black Pope,,, and the first to use Saint PETER’S name. You don’t believe me??? Google his name and World View…

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Kathleen3
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:17am
My bet is they are making way for a Black or Latino. I would not oppose this if the minority were the caliber of Dr. Ben Carson; I deeply resent it if the CC is caving in to the One World Order agenda.

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texasag73
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:16am
This great man will be missed. He is exactly what the Church that was created by Jesus Christ in Matthew 16:19 needed in this very dark age of sodomy, abortion, human cloning, and porn.

For the record, Limbo for unbaptized babies was never an official dogma of the church, and purgatory is very biblical….

http://www.catholicbible101.com/purgatory.htm

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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:54am
  You are creepy and scary…
  
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balij
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:05am
Who will succeed him?

An Exclusive list of Candidates who can succeed Him is given at

http://wallstnews.blogspot.com/

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Pio
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:57am
I pray for the predecessor to the Chair of Peter, I pray for Pope Benedict XVI, and I pray for all you ignorant, hateful people who have nothing better to do than tear down instead of build up

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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:42am
  You sound like Bashir, or Piers Morgan, or Radical Madcow
  
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theotherberean
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:56am
I hope they replace him with someone who can actually perform the miracles, signs and wonders, necessary to validate one’s calling to such a position of “authority.” Is the Pope really the Vicar of Christ, or just another man elevated to a high position by other men? A glaring example of idol worship, similar to the Jews and the golden calf at the base of Mt Sinai? Human pride and arrogance?

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- Pio
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:04am
  If Benedict thought himself a god, he would not retire. If we thought him to be a god we would not pray FOR him but TO him… I am faithful to whatever Holy Father we may have in matters of doctrine and the Church. I would die for Christ and His Holy Church! The pope is the visible head of Christ on earth. We are smart enough to understand he is not Christ Himself..duh!
  
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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:18am
  @Theotherberean
  
  You are kidding right? Like what kind of miracles? Crying jesus statues…virgin mary’s on grilled cheese?
  
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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:20am
  Hahaha…the things that make grown men/women believe in magic…dungeons & dragons, The Lord of The Rings, and the bible.
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:46am
  Hey DOORSOFIMPERCEPTION I’m telling you, it’s those cartoons that have turned your brain to mush.
  
  PIO, the Pope is not the visible head of Christ. Read your Bible. No wait, read a Christian Bible instead of that pseudo-Christian cult bible the RCC sells you.
  
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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:55am
  No seriously, tell me about the miracles…
  
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- barber2
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 11:32am
  THE: Nothing like a little ridicule. Must be an Obama Atheist Troll . Smile.
  
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- barber2
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 11:33am
  To clarify, my comment was aimed at THEOTHER. ( God only knows what the first ” BEREAN” must be like )
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 12:14pm
  DOORSOFIMPERCEPTION Look here for your miracles: http://dailystudybible.com/chronological/
  
  Barber, I wondered that too. Someone already had THEBEREAN. What’s your point? Or do you just like reading your own posts?
  
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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 12:32pm
  I have read the bible, I was a christian the first 25 years of my life. I mean tell me about the miracles that men perform today…Like Peter Popoff?
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 12:45pm
  If you claim that you were a Christian before but are not now, then you never were a Christian to begin with.
  
  My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. John 10:29
  
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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 1:24pm
  No seriously I was, I believed it whole heartedly…but in a sense you’re right, “christian” is just a label…it’s not like you are “really” talking to someone in outer space who died 2000 years ago(although it makes you feel real special). But anyways, I believed Jesus was my best friend, talked to him everyday, and tried really hard to bring people to the lord. Played in the church band, was a leader in my youth group, went on mission trips. Trust me if I wasn’t a true believer then no one is.
  
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- barber2
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 1:51pm
  THEOTHER: You are such a typical Lefty Troll: you love to smear, deceive , and annoy . And I’m sure there was ” another ” Berean as it is such a common handle to choose.
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 2:34pm
  DOORS, it’s not about who you are or what you do.
  
  Hey Barber, when did they let you out? I guess you won’t be hanging around the middle schools anymore, huh.
  
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- snooop1e
  Posted on February 13, 2013 at 8:48pm
  Hebrews 6:4-6
  
  “It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.”
  
  Scripture is clear, that it is possible to be enlightened, to taste the heavenly gift, to share in the Holy Spirit and to taste the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age and still turn away from God. I don’t know any Christians who would argue that it is possible to reject Jesus and still be enlightened, taste the heavenly gift, share in the Holy Spirit and taste the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age. I think all Christians would agree that the ONLY way to SHARE IN THE HOLY SPIRIT is through and in Jesus Christ. In other words those who reject Jesus do not SHARE IN THE HOLY SPIRIT.
  
  Calvin taught double predestination, the idea that man is degenerate and has no free will and God creates some people specifically to go to Heaven and others specifically to go to Hell. Double predestination denies FREE WILL Lucifer was the greatest of Angels and knew God and served God and yet he chose to separate himself from God. If it is possible for the greatest of Angels to turn from God how much more us?
  
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abwehragent
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:29am
For an interesting perspective on the selection of the next pope, take a moment to research the Papal Prophecies of St. Malachy. Although each reference is brief, his statements on each pope from the 1100′s has panned out.

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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:49am
  Malachi was a Kabbalist. Kabbala is an ancient, secret, Jewish, occult, mystical doctrine of science and tradition, based on an esoteric interpretation of the Old Testament.
  
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The_Doors_Of_Perception
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:28am
Jesus is coming back from outer space soon!!!!!

The belief that some cosmic Jewish Zombie can make you live forever if you symbolically eat his flesh and telepathically tell him that you accept him as your master, so he can remove an evil force from your soul that is present in humanity because a rib-woman was convinced by a talking snake to eat from a magical tree.

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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:58am
  This is what morning cartoons have done to your brain….
  
  Mush.
  
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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:15am
  No, I think you misunderstood…I don’t believe this…:)
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:48am
  Of course you don’t. Someone has to burn in hell. Thanks for stepping up!
  
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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 11:54am
  @Theotherbeanburrito
  Ooooooooohhhh scary…Let me ask you something. How much sleep do you lose at the prospect of going to hell because you don’t believe in Allah? You feel that feeling? Yeah, that is exactly how I feel when you write down your empty threats of violence to me. You’re a sick person to throw around the perception of eternal human torture so flippantly…even when I was a christian…ah nevermind
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 12:16pm
  I never did pay any mind to you. LoL Why have a battle of wits with an unarmed person?
  
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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 12:34pm
  Good..at least you know your argument is empty. I wasn’t expecting a response…chest beating is what I guessed would occur.
  
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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 12:38pm
  Battle of wits withTheotherberean…
  
  Statement One: You’re stupid…because of cartoons
  
  Statement Two: You’re going to hell!!(Possibly from cartoons as well, it wasn’t clear)
  
  Statement Three: I’m smarter than you…(refer to statement one)
  
  Hahahahahaha
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 12:47pm
  The truth hurts, I know. Not all will be saved.
  
  But thanks again for stepping up!
  
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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 1:26pm
  Statement four: Trust me you’re stupid and I’m smart….You’re going to hell!
  
  Let me ask you something dear friend…do you think I deserve hell? Would you send anyone to hell?
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 2:35pm
  DOORS, I didn’t make the rules.
  
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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 3:45pm
  If you could make the rules. Would you send people to hell?
  
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- Witness1974
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 4:05pm
  “Let me ask you something dear friend…do you think I deserve hell? Would you send anyone to hell?”
  
  Doorsofblasphemy: If you were ever a Christian you would know the answer to your first question. The combination of these two questions reveals the poverty of your understanding of the Bible, of theology, and even philosophy. For all your Bible reading you claim to have done it seems you are one of those described in II Timothy 3: 7 : “always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” You might also read the first 6 verses in chapter 3; they seem pretty descriptive as well. Whatever church you attended, whatever mission trips you went on you were just one of the tares among wheat. You know nothing of the Holy One of Israel. In the end, unless a miracle happens that changes your heart, you will get what you want. You will have nothing to do with God and He will have nothing to do with you. You will be excluded from His presence except for His wrath. The more you turn away from admonition the more evidence you pile up against yourself. I will not interact with you any longer and I hope you will do the same. As of now you have qualified yourself as one of the swine before which we are taught not to throw pearls. You are not a genuine seeker of truth. You are not a serious person. What a waste.
  
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barber2
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:25am
Think it was a wise decision. Plain to see that with so much evil lose in the world today, the Catholic Church needs a more energetic Pope to fight the ” good fight.” Devil seems to be winning at present .

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- Pio
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:08am
  All in God’s time.. Im sure thats what they have thought for thousands of years. remember all but 1 apostle was crucified. We started with 12, and we very well could end up with 12 in the end
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 1:06pm
  The first 12 performed miracles, signs and wonders. What happened to the rest?
  
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shesellsshells
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:13am
Pope John Paul was shot, and yes, he was also frail and when he died he was just short of 85 years old……but he never contemplated resigning. I loved John Paul…….Benedict? Not so much. I pray this is not another New World Order sign.

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Sharon Rose
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:10am
May God bless you Pope Benedict, good and faithful servant.

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NigelTufnel
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:09am
British bookies already have the odds out. They’ve got the guy from NY at 33/1. Marc Oulette from Canada looks pretty good at 5/2. I’m taking $500 of that action.

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- barber2
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:26am
  Funny. Betting on the next Pope ?!
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:00am
  Why not? He’s but a mere man, a sinner, no different than you or I.
  
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- barber2
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 11:30am
  THE: You seem to have a ” message” here.
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 12:17pm
  Yeah BARBER, but you’re probably not smart enough to get it.
  
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- barber2
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 1:52pm
  THEOTHER: If only your knowledge and intelligence were as large as your arrogance.
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 2:36pm
  I know. Kind of a drag for you being schooled by an idiot, huh.
  
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watashbuddyfriend
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:05am
‘There shall be no Gods before ME!’

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Landon410
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 8:59am
I bet Obama tries to run for this….. (joke…. or is it….)

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NigelTufnel
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 8:58am
I believe Pope Benedict’s words and thoughts are heartfelt and true on this matter. He is very old and his routine is demanding. But what follows could be a serious power play inside the church. It will be interesting to watch as it is a big deal for the world. The subsequent death of Pope John Paul I after just 33 days, followed by split between the traditionalist and modern Cardinals allowed for the election of the first non-Italian pope. Wojtyla or the Polish John Paul II. A charismatic survivor of the German occupation struck fear into the depths of Russian Communism and resulted in a communist hit on the Pope himself. His survival, his subsequent forgiveness of the hitman and Ronald Reagan’s constant pounding and denegration of communism engraved the end of communism in Russia. A super power would be no more. I’d say that is significant. Let’s watch and see.

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poster
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 8:57am
I’m predicting a black pope…. Bill Clinton.

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poster
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 8:57am
Did I miss the Blaze headline…. “You’re not going to believe who is resigning!” ??

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quiltgal
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 8:37am
This Pope has made a number of socialistic statements lately supporting government wealth redistribution, climate change theory, and other Agenda 21 goals. I’m glad he’s resigning. I hope the next Pope will be smarter.

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- Tigress1
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:13am
  I agree 100%. This guy is way to socialistic for my taste. Hopefully, Cardinal Dolan will get in. It will be a refreshing change. No ex-Nazis either!
  
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may40
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 8:31am
Are any of you familiar with the prophecy of Malachy? If it’s correct then be prepared and come to the Lord before it’s too late.

http://www.biblebelievers.org.au/malachy.htm

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- Exiled
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 8:40am
  Not every person that writes something down (or in this case has something attributed to them) is prophesy.
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 10:14am
  Are you kidding? Malachi was a Kabbalist. Kabbala is an ancient, secret, Jewish, occult, mystical doctrine of science and tradition, based on an esoteric interpretation of the Old Testament.
  
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Exiled
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 8:23am
Um, kids, the “Prophesy of St Malachi” isn’t scripture. It’s a list a bishop in Ireland was credited with writing.

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- Witness1974
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 9:46am
  Ireland? My family is from there. Now I know it’s not true.
  
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- Christian_Patriot
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 11:26am
  True St. Malachy isnt scripture but he is 100% accurate so far. With that in mind you can also find scripture to back it up. Look at Daniel 9:27 and Revelation 13 and 17:10-18.
  
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KalanVA
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 8:20am
He looks so frail. God bless him.

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DougHuffman
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 8:17am
Such as Appiah will further divide the Body of Christ. I am thankful to be protestant confessed Lutheran.

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RIGS
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 8:09am
What is the big deal of him stepping down. Anybody out there think they can do what they did maybe twenty years ago. So he’s retiring……………………..

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LRC
Posted on February 11, 2013 at 7:59am
I’m always amazed by the hatred mouthed by non-Catholics…sheeeezzzzz, you must be fun to live with.

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- barber2
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 2:08pm
  Agree. The Sons of Anarchy crowd seem to have invaded the Blaze ever since Obama II . Maybe Soros released some more media money ?! They all love to annoy and smear here and have a special hatred for religions . Guess that’s just part of the atheist package which bonds them all. Hate and anger. Smears and lies. Hate churches. Hate capitalism. Hate America. Hate the police. Hate authority – which is so odd that they work with the Big Brother Crowd. Maybe it’s just the ” out-sider” in all of them. The love of destruction . Or ” change” as Obama codes it.
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 2:41pm
  bitch, bitch, bitch.
  
  That time of the month?
  
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- The_Doors_Of_Perception
  Posted on February 11, 2013 at 3:46pm
  Jesus is rolling in his tomb…”These are my followers?”
  
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- theotherberean
  Posted on February 12, 2013 at 9:30am
  Christians aren’t perfect. Just forgiven.
  
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