Sunday, February 24, 2013

A Canadian pope? The word on Marc Ouellet


Interesting reading from a Canadian point of view on the possibility of a Canadian Pope, in two separate articles by the Vancouver Sun.

The odds are strong – seven to two – that Canada will next month become much more famous.

Two big British bookmakers are putting serious money on a Canadian horse: Ladbrokes and PaddyPower are betting that Marc Ouellet, a cardinal from Quebec, could be elected pope at the March conclave.

If that happens, Canada’s Catholic roots and its supposedly polite, multi-faith culture will be thrust into the international spotlight.

The interest has already arrived. Popular American satirist Stephen Colbert devoted much of a show last week to mock-complaining that Ouellet would be “too Canadian” (i.e., too nice) to be pope.

When a man is catapulted to the top of a church of 1.2 billion people, unpredictable things happen to him and his country of origin. For good or ill.

More here.

Part 2: Read the rest


Apparently there was a time when Bishops had political clout. Here's a quote from Part 2.
  
The days of Catholic bishops calling the political shots in Canada faded after the Quiet Revolution in Quebec in the 1960s.

If there was ever a reason for the Bishops to return to a position of authority and influence, it is now.


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