Only Nixon Could go to China: A Reflection on the Election of pope Benedict XVI

With absolute astonishment I received the news that Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger had been elected as the 265th Supreme Pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church. Yes, I knew he was one of the front runners (papably) but would the venerable cardinals of Holy Mother Church once again publicly violate the well-established tradition of not electing a son of Italy as the Bishop of Rome and Vicar of Jesus Christ? Certainly, their eminences would not be so reckless and callous with sacred history and tradition.

FOR THE GOOD OF THE CHURCH AND THE GREATER GLORY OF GOD

I shared my concern with a priest friend Tuesday evening. He emphatically told me that the cardinals' decision was not predicated on history or tradition. Their choice was based on their bedrock conviction that the Spirit was calling this particular person to lead the church at this particular time. For them, his nationality (that is to say his nation/state of origin) was irrelevant to the ministry and mission entrusted to his pastoral care. Until the election of Pope John Paul II, Italians had monopolized the Papacy for over 490 years.

Even Cardinal Ratzinger's advanced age (78) was not seen as an impediment by the cardinals. Catholicism, through history, has been run by a patriarchal gerontocracy and thus the election of Ratzinger would not be unprecedented. Ratzinger's brother cardinals were convinced that neither his race, his nationality , his age or any other physical trait should preclude him from serving the church as its chief pastor. The priority for the cardinals was that he possessed the willingness to proclaim the Gospel and to love God's people. Benedict XVI is not a perfect man, aspects of his biography attests to this but, in the Cardinal's assessment, he is the right person for the papacy at this time.

Pastoral Necessity Trumps Tradition

While its' problematic that Nither Benecdict XVI nor a significant majority of the cardinals never served the church as a parish priest, they made the pastoral discernment to ignore, if not intentionally judge as invalid, the age-old tradition of electing an Italian to be the successor of Peter. For this author, their pastoral assessment of a unique and particular situation (cf. Acts 6:1-7)merits both our allegiance and our scrutiny. More often than not, many parish priests are forced to weigh the needs of a particular individual against firmly established ecclesial teachings and traditions. While most priests respect and honor the teachings of the ordinary magisterium, there are times when, as implemented by the cardinals they are compelled to act in order to safeguard the salvation of a soul(s) and promote the greater glory of God. When this situation occurs, the priest is not maliciously attempting to thwart his superiors; he is trying to imitate Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd. If the Cardinals could act in this manner for the church universal, certainly a priest could exercise a similar praxis for the people entrusted to his pastoral care. In the end, the cardinals made a clear and unambiguous statement: The needs of the people trump the nobility of tradition.

ONLY NIXON COULD GO TO CHINA

Many Catholic progressives were not happy with the result of the papal election. However, I believe that they can take some encouagement from a lesson of history. Former National Security advises and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger is reported to have stated, "ONLY NIXON COULD GO TO CHINA". Its a well-established fact that former President Richard M. Nixon was an ardent anti-Communist and Cold Warrior. His opposition to Communist China was without question and arguably without equal. Kissinger's observation indicated that no other American politician could have successfully pulled off the tricky diplomatic feet of opening relations with "Red China". The avowed anti-communist became the agent of change, transition and openness.

We can only hope that the staunch conservatism of Benedict XVI will yield to the prompting of the Holy Spirit. Its quite possible, and there is historical precedent to suggest, that this rigid traditionalist could become one of the greatest facilitators of change and renewal in the Catholic Church, as well as, for Christianity throughout the world. If Nixon could go to China, then anything is possible!