Surrounded by controversy from the moment he stepped onto the pontifical scene, German born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, the man we now know as Pope Benedict XVI, has proven once again that you can’t stop the Shining. Rumors of homosexual activity, secret boyfriends and Catholic sex scandal conspiracies have all been whispered (not so quietly) as the reason for the resignation. The first resignation by a pope since Pope Gregory XII in 1415, and the first to do so on his own initiative since Pope Celestine V in 1294. Did I mention he was also said to have once upon a time been associated with the Nazi party?
The whole concept of the “pope” perplexes me. As a self-proclaimed Spiritualist I will always say that I have never been very Religious. Instead I believe in building and upholding a relationship with the great Spirit, the Creator. Religion has always been too ritualistic for me and no matter how many arguments I hear for the contrary, they all come off as the same whether we’re talking Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, or Judaism. Same thing, different language. The only difference and ironically the biggest factor is the way these religions are interpreted followed by the manifestations of the interpretations. Man made laws and judgement of others, waging wars and violations of basic human rights comes from the misinterpretation of religion. Sometimes I think Religion was created just to keep the people divided, but I digress. Back to the pope…
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