Holy Smoke Gets In Your Eyes

Batman? No, Vatman actually, or Vatican Man at any rate! The world's one billion catholics have a new pope today, in the shape of Cardinal Josef Ratzinger, or Pope Benedict the Sixteenth as we should now refer to His Holiness. I would have brought you my perspective on this appointment late last night, but like the emissions from the crude chimney which announced a "result" to the waiting faithful, a glitch in the system meant my nocturnal nattering was lost just as I was about to go to print.

White smoke or black smoke? The signals were unclear to many for a while over the two days the conclave took to appoint the new pontiff, leading to many premature cheers. At least the tension was not kept up for long though, as this was one of the shortest conclaves in the history of the Catholic church. Writing from my Protestant perspective though, I think somehow it was obvious the 78-year old Bavarian was the most credible successor to John Paul II. He had impressed many with his eulogy at the late Pope's funeral mass, and in the mass which preceeded the symbolic locking of the doors of the Sistine Chapel while the ancient process of election under the guidance of the Holy Spirit took place.