"Does it feel like you're getting a new daddy?" - On the Pope's Leadership and Resignation

This past weekend I was a part of a youth retreat where the theme was “The Walk.”  Student leaders broke down Micah 6:8 and examined the verse in many parts, “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?”  Requirement. Doing justice.  Loving mercy.  Walking humbly.

Monday morning when I finally woke up from my post-retreat coma, I was reminded of this verse as I read the string of tweets informing me that Pope Benedict XVI would be resigning at the end of the month.  As a Catholic going to a Baptist school, working in a Methodist youth group, leading in a Christian Mission Alliance congregation, and living in a state with only 6.6% Catholic population (give me a second to breathe here) – I’ve been asked several questions about this event varying from the practical “How will the Church choose a new Pope” to the personal “Do you suspect any kind of foul play or scandal” and “Does it feel kind of like you’re getting a new daddy?” 

No, we aren’t freaking out.  We have generations upon generations of tradition, history, and teachings that have prepared us for moments like this.  The practical questions are quick and easy to answer – the Internet is full of facts and information – so here, you’ll find answers to the less practical, more personal thoughts on this subject.

The word “pope” translates directly to the English word “father” and the Pope is often referred to as Papa for just that reason.  Yes, it feels like I’m getting a new daddy, but not in a bitter sense.  Our Papa made this decision in the best interests of his family.  Remember when Mario Lemieux retired?  He said that if he could be on the ice, he would, and it pains him not to be there but his health, and his family, as well as the good of all those involved in the NHL were the most important factors in his decision.  He stepped down knowing his limitations for the good of his health, family, and greater community – and so has our Pope. 

In his decision to step down, Pope Benedict is displaying a great act of walking humbly with God.  I stated earlier that Micah 6:8 was my first thought upon hearing of Benedict’s resignation.  Throughout his statement of resignation, Benedict addresses every aspect of this verse.

 “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good…”: Benedict states that he examined his conscience.  He’s the Pope.  Of course He isn’t going to make this decision without chattin’ it up with God.  He recognized his mortal nature and the restraints that are placed upon his worldly body, and he and he came to a conclusion with God’s guidance.

“And what does the Lord require of you but to do justice…”: Benedict outlines the requirements of his role as Pope, and how he cannot do justice to this role – The Pope is a pretty active guy, his job is pretty physically challenging, and he can’t keep up his health to properly and justly support the church.  Done. Moving on.

“To love mercy…”:  I’ve never thought about the Pope as someone who asks for forgiveness, who needs mercy, who needs anything.  However, in his last paragraph he asks pardon for his defects.  A man with a title deemed infallible asks for pardon, asks for mercy. 

“and to walk humbly with your God?”: This one ties it all together - St. Faustina once said “A humble soul does not trust itself, but places all its confidence in God.”  How humble must the earthly father of the Church be to step down from this position?  While his physical weakness has caused Benedict to resign, it also displayed a great example of humility that we should all aspire to imitate.  To not only know your limitations, but to trust that God is in control.  The Pope isn’t the supreme ruler of the church, and Benedict is sure to bring this to our attention as he calls us to trust God, to trust that our mother Mary will intercede to the Cardinals, and, most importantly, just to trust. 

            This is not a huge moment of change or weakness or sadness in the Church.  This is really a time to take notes on leadership.  Odds are that if you’re reading this, you aren’t the Pope and your job or role in leadership is not as demanding as that of the Pope’s.  We, as leaders, should attempt to imitate this courage of Benedict and to apply Micah 6:8 to our ministry.  Do justice – do what you’re called to do for others, and do it with excellence.  To love mercy – know your faults, ask for pardon, and pardon others just as well.  And to walk humbly with your God – trust God in all aspects of your leadership, and take courage to follow through in actions of trust.

“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 bark 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. 

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.”  

- Pope Benedict XVI on his resignation.

Step Sing, Worship, and How You Really Just Had to Be There

If you’re in Birmingham this month, you might be wondering why all Samford students look like they haven’t slept in days, have hoarse voices, and seemingly forgot the meaning of the word hygiene.  The answer is simple – a university-wide singing and dancing competition has taken over their lives and become their sole passion for these three weeks. 

Photo by: Sarah Waller

This is my second year participating in step sing, and it’s also my second year trying to explain logically to outsiders how over 1,000 students look forward to these three weeks of singing and dancing more than they anticipate their Birthdays, or Christmas, or possibly even spring break.  When I attempted to explain step sing to the high school students I work with, or to my middle aged boss in a town thirty minutes from Samford, I found that step sing is one of those “You really just had to be there” moments.  We give up on explaining ourselves because we don’t think it’s possible for others to understand this level of passion for something like step sing.  And then I realized that this isn’t the only time that we allow this to happen.

Every Sunday morning of my college career, I see the 10am mass-exodus of Samford students as they leave to attend their respective churches.  After the service, they return to the caf where all that they can tell me about their morning is “There was a really moving moment” or “the music chosen this week really captured the message” or even “the pastor’s message was really good.”  Later in the week, I’m reminded constantly by classmates and friends of how awesome their small groups and disciple groups are, but the description of these groups ends there.  “They just really get it,” or “I just feel really called to love on (only) this group of girls right now.”  If it was so moving, so accurate, so good – why can’t you share it with me?  Every Sunday, I would come back from mass to hear about how I missed out on all these “You had to be there” moments.

If the divinely inspired authors of the Gospel just wrote “Jesus did some great stuff, but you really just had to be there” where would we be today?  What would Christianity be?  Would it even exist?

We, as Samford students, get so wrapped up in our own personal experiences and in the memories we’ve made with our own respective Step Sing groups that we think it would be impossible for an outsider to understand.  We, as church members, or small group members, or even as ministry teams get so wrapped up in what happened in our own communities that we can’t share this with the outside community.  “You had to be there” - but we’re called as a body to spread these moments outside of the communities that were already there.

How does your greater surrounding community know your church?  The same way that our surrounding community knows step sing.  Our neighbors know us by our traffic.  Charities we’ve chosen to work with know us by our service.  Our friends and co-workers know the gist of what we do - but they don’t understand the enthusiasm.  They know that in step sing, we sing and dance and compete for an otherwise meaningless title.  They know that in our churches/small groups/ministries that we sit around and talk about God, or sing about God, or paint, or dance, or serve, or drink about God – but they don’t understand the message of God that we’ve been equipped to spread.

Staying tied to a community is important, but what we learn in these communities is more important, and sharing what we’ve learned in a sense of love and communion with those outside our comfort zones is most necessary. In step sing, I’m learning how to spend three weeks supporting a random group of girls, many that I’ve never met before, knowing that many will graduate in a few months.  I’m also learning some pretty sick dance moves.  These relationships are important, and so are these dance moves, but these lessons in teamwork, patience, and grace that we unknowingly learn during this time will last longer than this season of song and dance, and will better all of my future relationships and team efforts.  I’ll be sharing these lessons of teamwork and patience with everyone I meet for the rest of my life.  I’ve pulled out the dance moves and songs from previous shows as party tricks and ice breakers more times than I can count.  These lessons are nothing unless we share them.

 Likewise, our church/small group/ministry’s purpose should be to support and equip us to go out to those who don’t already understand God’s story, and our story, and any story, rather than encouraging us to only meet with each other.  If we’re speaking with people inside our churches about the Gospel more often than we’re bringing the Gospel to those outside of ourselves, then we’re not succeeding in our mission to advance the Kingdom.  Our Christian walk leads nowhere until we share it.

So go.  Go in peace.  Go in peace to love and to serve.  To love and to share.  To spread the Kingdom of God to all the ends of the earth.