Count me in: Moral Certitude and the invalid abdication of Pope Benedict XVI, still reigning

Two year anniversary: Declaration of Moral Certitude. It’s one of those moments where you will never forget exactly where you were when you clicked the “Publish” button…

8 thoughts on “Count me in: Moral Certitude and the invalid abdication of Pope Benedict XVI, still reigning”

  1. Somewhat related, has Benedict asked to be called ‘Holy Father’ still? Or is there any documented incident in which he responded to the title ‘Holy Father’?

    1. He himself dictated the continued use of that form of address. He had no authority to do that, which effectively precluded his “successor” from making that decision, which is impossible.

      1. That’s what I heard, at least over at Barnhardt’s site, and after some searching, I did find a quote of Cardinal Sarah addressing him as “Holy Father,” arguably showing that at least Benedict responds to this title.

          1. I understand people are saying he demanded this (I don’t seriously doubt he did), though I am curious to know of the specific event in which he demanded this for my own records. I only found online his desire to be called other titles like His Holiness and Pope Emeritus. If anyone knows, I’d appreciate it.

          2. Right after Benedict announced his “resignation” there were dozens of articles quoting theologians and Church historians explaining what would take place after 28 Feb and what it would look like. Then Benedict also started granting interviews and making announcements which revealed that no, his “retirement” was going to look anything like that. He wasn’t relinquishing the papal white, the title, the form of address, the residency inside the Vatican, the Fisherman’s ring, etc. Use a search engine and narrow the timeframe of the search to February 2013. It’s all right there.

      2. Thank you, Mark, for the re-post. I missed it the first time ’round. I appreciate your clear discussion of the differences in types of certitude. Happy moral certitude anniversary! Now what? Any ideas?

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