February 28, 2013 at 8pm. This is no Mayan prediction; it reflects the Teutonic precision of one of a handful of popes in the history of the Catholic Church who voluntarily gave up the seat of St Peter.

Leadership is acting in the best interests of followers rather than a glorified ego trip

When, eight years ago, Joseph Ratzinger was chosen to succeed Pope John Paul II, he was 78 years old. Pope Benedict XVI was the oldest prelate to be given the job since 1730 and many saw his papacy as an interim one.

In an article carried in The Times just after his appointment, I had written that the key mission that Benedict set for his pontificate was to return Europe to Christianity; to combat secularism and relativism, which he saw as the main enemies of Catholicism.

The German Shepherd’s decision shocked the Catholic world as his mission remains largely unaccomplished.

A liberal reformer turned arch-conservative, he was instrumental in quashing ‘liberation theology’. And, yet, during his tenure, Pope Benedict XVI showed great intellectual flexibility. His social policies offered a critique of the excesses of ‘capitalist’ globalisation, the frivolity of consumerism and the evils of social inequality. In his encyclical Deus Caritas Est he exalted love in all its human forms.

In his wisdom, Benedict possibly realised how right Greek historian Polybius was in stating that “a good general not only sees the way to victory; he also knows when victory is impossible”. A University professor who shunned the limelight, Benedict was not renowned for his leadership skills. Still, his resignation is a lesson that leadership is above all acting in the best interests of followers rather than a glorified ego trip.

The way is now paved for the election of a younger Pope fit to run a global institution with over one billion followers. Who knows, perhaps the decision of ‘God’s Rottweiler’ will mark the start of a new trend whereby popes stay on only until they deem themselves fit, to fulfil their mission. This is in sharp contrast to Pope John Paul II’s choice to remain in office, despite his fragility caused by Parkinson’s disease and other maladies.

It was Benedict’s predecessor himself who had decreed that members of the episcopate retire at 75 and that cardinals do not join a conclave past 80. What is good for the goose, has to be good for the gander. There is nothing but tradition which stops the Bishop of Rome from retiring. Church law specifies only that such a resignation has to be “freely made and properly manifested”.

Marco Ventura, professor of law and religion at Siena University, wrote in his blog: “The theologian who held relativism as the worst foe of the Church will be the Pope who relativised the papacy.”

Pope Benedict XVI chose the World Day of the Sick to announce his abdication. He read a short note in Latin indicating ill-health and the lack of strength in “body and mind” to carry out his mission.

The only other Pontiff who resigned because of ill-health was Celestine V. A former hermit, in 1294, Celestine left after having been in office for just a few months. Other popes have stepped down for a variety of reasons in the papacy’s coloured mediaeval history.

Pope Benedict’s resignation triggered a tsunami of speculation as to what made him take such a drastic step. Was it just that the ailing Benedict was afraid of ending up like his predecessor? Many observers believe that the real reasons are to be found in the controversies and conflicts that have surfaced during his papacy.

La Repubblica speaks about a report that links the resignation to the discovery of a network of gay prelates in the Vatican, some of whom could have been subject to blackmail. Others blame the persistent infighting at the Vatican as manifested during the Vatileaks scandal.

Although no newcomer to the Vatican, Benedict XVI was probably unaware of all the intrigue and, feeling impotent to impose the necessary reforms and, just like the Pope in the 2011 film Habemus Papam, he decided to call it a day.

Other commentators have pointed to the sexual abuse scandals in many parts of the world that continue to undermine the Church’s moral authority and to mar Benedict’s rule.

The departing Pope repeatedly apologised about these abuses but was himself criticised that, when Archbishop of Munich, he allowed a known molester to return to pastoral duties to protect the Church’s reputation.

As the eminent theologian retires into the seclusion of a monastery within the Vatican, it is hard to judge the legacy he leaves behind.

His conservatism, sticking to obsolete positions on homosexuality, celibacy, abortion and contraception, did not serve to bring the Church closer to its followers.

Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini, who passed away last August, accused the Church’s leadership for its being “left behind for 200 years”. Pope Benedict XVI perhaps realised that the time is ripe for a radical change in the Church, which he could never deliver himself. The bets are, once again, on a Pope from a Third World country.

The wisdom of Pope Benedict’s decision to resign will be largely gauged by who is chosen to succeed him.

fms18@onvol.net