The new pope deserves respect

Published 7:57 am Wednesday, April 27, 2005

By Staff
Letter to the Editor
Because the press has been full of coverage lately regarding the Roman Catholic Church, I feel inclined to offer my opinion, being Catholic as I am.
The pinnacle of Catholic Christian theology was reached through the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s. The subsequent years have brought a lot of pendulum swinging back to the olden days, pre-Vatican II, mostly in nostalgia. Currently, we are in an archaic period, and the election of Cardinal Ratzinger as Pope makes this fact evident. This is not necessarily a bad thing.
The fact is that not every Christian inside or outside Catholicism has reached the pinnacle embodied in Vatican II. Clarification of Christian thinking is necessary to bring about the fulfillment of the Council vision and to bring us fully into the Kingdom. Pope Benedict XVI says he has as his goal the unification of Christianity and fulfillment of the Council. This must be what the Holy Spirit has in mind.
Random House defines the word "archaic" as "marked by the characteristics of an earlier period; antiquated; forming the earliest stage; prior to full development; primitive; ancient; old". My prayer is that our Church will grow beyond the archaic into the stage of full development very soon.
Letty Digmon
Atmore

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