Pope Benedict XVI to Resign in March (true)

[Gabriel Syme]

The Vatican is already a Museum - complete with exhibits - sculpture - paintings - and a bunch of old relics that run the place. YOU pay to see most of it.

That isn't quite true - yes, the Vatican state has a (very high quality) museum and, yes, you pay a modest entrance fee to that, if you want to see it.

I visited it last year, and its well worth taking the opportunity.

My only criticism would be that the sheer volume of people wanting to visit it means that it is constantly crowded, which can affect the experience a little.

For example, I am sure the Sistine Chapel would have meant more to me, had it not been like a crowded subway station haha!

But - as with every Catholic Church in the world - there is no entrance fee to St Peters Basilica, which is an amazing testament to human achievement, quite away from its religious significance.

Nor is there any charge to attend a regular Papal Audience, though you need to ensure you reserve a ticket in advance (as, while 1000s can attend, numbers have to be limited for safety reasons).

The Vatican state is tiny and does not have a conventional economy. Its income is derived from entrance fees to its museums, and from donations from the Catholic faithful. Souveniers/gifts too, I guess.

However - Pope Benedict was one of the most conservative popes - and his policies forced more people away from religion that towards it. We can only hope that his successor sucks as much as he did

You will find that, by and large, Popes are the same. This is because their job is to proclaim the truth - and the truth doesn't change.

If people do not like the truth, and choose to leave, then so be it - better a small church, than a false church.

We Catholics find it hilarious at times like these, when the secular media speculates on who will be Pope.

They always say "this is a great chance for the church to modernise" - meaning accept secular morality on homosexuality, abortion and the rest.

Then, when the new guy - inevitably - comes out and doesn't sanction sodomy or infanticide, they are up in arms about this "terribly conservative Pope".

(of course, the initial "great chance" story is simply them laying the groundwork for their inevitable "boo hiss" story).

Its hilarious - comedy gold.

All the secular media want is for the Church to give in to secular whims regarding morality. If it did, the Church would never feature in the press again - the press would lose all interest in it - just like the protestant-churches who have already acquiesced to secular morality.

If I had to pick the new guy, I would pick Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, who is 65 years old (young for a Pope) and is Sri-Lankan. But then, you just never know who its going to be - neither do they - until its done and dusted.

Cheers
GS

---

The BBC tend to be up the Pope's arse at the best of times.

Hiya mate,

You are joking with the comment, right?

The BBC is very hostile to Catholicism and its reporting is very biased. The institution is dominated by atheists, secularists, homosexuals and feminists. Its workforce is highly concentrated to these demographics, (and is disproportionately young), it does not represent general British society well at all.

Perhaps the best example of the quality of its coverage on Catholicism is probably World Youth Day 2011.

In this event, 1.5 million young Catholics from around the globe gathered to meet and celebrate their faith together.

Yet BBC coverage focused almost exclusively on the 5,000 protesters outside, (a tiny amount of people by comparison), comprising homosexuals, feminists and anti-faith groups.

This overt bias was widely mocked: even the Guardian newspaper - the Guardian (about as anti-Catholic a rag as you can get) - ran an article saying the coverage was a complete disgrace.

If I were a Catholic, I would be feeling rather pissed off with the BBC. The news bulletin in this morning's Today programme carried an report of the pope's visit to Madrid that concentrated entirely on the "thousands" of protestors against the visit. It did not once mention World Youth Day, the extraordinary global Catholic gathering that the pope is also visiting. That has brought something like 1.5 million young people from around the world to the Spanish capital to greet him. Whether or not you approve of this, it is important and – above all – newsworthy simply because it is unexpected and goes against the grain of what the media tell us. So why is it not reported?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/...-youth-day

Imo, the BBC is pretty ignorant of anything which lies outwith the very narrow self-interests of its journalists and presenters and is incompetent to cover anything meeting this description!

Cheers
GS