Article Added On: April 04, 2005 - over 3 years ago
Title: 'Enormous task' to choose Pope's successor
Author: Les Perreaux
Publication: CP
Publication Date: January 01, 2005 - over 3 years ago
Faith Groups: Roman Catholic
Themes: religious attitudes in Canada

Abstract: Canadian Catholics want next pope to respect tradition and modern world

April 4, 2005

Canadian Catholics want a Pope who will embrace youth while respecting tradition, a man who will modernize the church while preserving the faith.

They seek a pontiff who will reach out to other religious leaders while defending his flock with an iron fist from those who persecute Roman Catholics.

Canadian Catholics offered a host of contradictory advice yesterday for the man who will succeed Pope John Paul in leading a billion followers in the 21st century.

"It's an enormous task," said Francine Drolet, a middle-aged worshipper at Quebec City's Basilique Notre-Dame.

"It's certain the next Pope will not be able to turn everything upside-down tomorrow. That's not going to happen. But if we want more people, we have to take steps."

Eighty-year-old Conrad Paradis said the next Pope must adapt to modern times.

"He must be more liberal, he must live in our era," he said. "Things like contraception, they are modern and inevitable and it's not something you can stop.

"I've come a long way over the years. The church should too."

Paradis had two young allies on the streets of Montreal. Lauren Cardoni and Katie O'Donnell, both 18 and visiting from New Hampshire, said it's time for a new Pope with a new attitude.

Cardoni said the church needs a little makeover but "not an extreme makover."

She would like to see a Pope who would start by allowing women to be priests.

"I just feel there are too many 'noes,' too many rules," she said.

Pope John Paul, who died Saturday, was hailed for his relationship with youth, for pushing freedom in former Communist countries and for his spirit of openness to other faiths.

But he frustrated liberals within the church by freezing church policy on many social issues.

The pontiff consistently forbid contraception, including condoms, while AIDS ravaged Africa and other parts of the world. He also banned pre-marital sex and divorce, despite evidence most Catholics in North America ignored his stern warnings.

The Pope kept women from the priesthood and condemned same-sex marriage.

About 13 million Canadians identify themselves as Roman Catholic, but only a fraction of them regularly attend church.

Many Catholics say updating church policy on some of these issues will be the cornerstone to rebuilding attendance.

Other parishioners at Canadian churches yesterday expressed hope that the next pope will respect both modern values and the traditional teachings of the church.

"We need a Pope with an open mind yet some direction, discipline if you want, so we don't wander too far outside the doctrine," John Dolan, 56, said at St. Michael's Cathedral in Toronto. "I think that's important."

However, many Catholics say the next pontiff should pursue the best of John Paul's accomplishments.

John Paul travelled more than any other Pope, visiting 129 countries in 26 years.

"He made great strides to get out of the Vatican," said Drolet in Quebec City. "The next pope will not be able to do things any other way."

Don Gorman at St. Joseph's Basilica in Edmonton said the Pope's international presence is an important legacy, along with his opinions on social issues. The Pope made three visits to Canada, including stops in Edmonton.

"I think the same kind of pope would be a very good example," Gorman said. "I think a lot of the things he did set the stage for the next Pope and I hope they continue along the same lines."

Most Rev. Terrence Prendergast, archbishop of Halifax, said the church's international growth could give Catholics a whole new kind of leadership.

"I think the Holy Spirit might give us a Pope from some other continent," he said. "I think the fact that the Catholic Church is strongest and largest in Latin America speaks for the significance of that church and that the leaders from Latin America should at least be seriously considered."

He launched World Youth Day, a regular gathering that has become a hit among young Catholics. The last meeting in Toronto in 2002 drew more than 500,000 people.

"It would be great to see the Pope continue the tradition of reaching out to the young as this Holy Father has done," said Neil McCarthy of the Office of Catholic Youth of Toronto.