Ratzinger's death paves the way for Francis' resignation

The death of each pope had generated in the last seven centuries a political process of enormous consequences.

After the funeral of the deceased, and the seat declared vacant, the college of cardinals shut themselves up in the Sistine Chapel until the Holy Spirit indicated when it was time to add potassium chlorate, lactose and rosin to the brazier with the ballot papers to obtain the white smoke clarifier.

This time it won't happen.

But the death of Benedict XVI will also have political, legal and biographical consequences in the final stretch of his successor, who today is one year older than Joseph Ratzinger was in 2013, when he resigned from office.

The path of resignation, on the one hand, is paved for Francisco.

But the opposition to the Pope is no secret, he presses and organizes already thinking about the next conclave.

Francisco always explained that he took good note of his predecessor's resignation.

And that from now on it would be impossible not to appreciate that possibility for a pope who sensed the decline of his forces.

But he also implied that two emeritus popes would be too many and that, in no case, would a hypothetical step by step make sense while his predecessor lived.

And that is the main novelty now.

Those who know him well, however, believe Francis' authority will be further bolstered without papal coexistence and that no resignation is in sight.

“I think that on Thursday [the day of Ratzinger's funeral] the papacy of Francis will start again.

Until today, Benedict XVI has been a reference, but also a brake and a kind of containment, especially for the conservative circles that have tried to use him”, says Alberto Melloni,

In recent years, the ultra-conservative sector has waged a merciless battle against Francis, whom they accused of being a heretic and even called for his resignation, through the mouth of Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò.

Benedicto, however, also functioned as a kind of shield.

And now Francisco will have to measure himself with those environments, mainly coming from the church and the American conservative world, which even went so far as to proclaim the see vacant.

“The opposition that Francis has within the Church should not be underestimated.

All the popes have had it, also the rulers... Up to a certain point it is normal.

The problem is that now the resistance will point directly to his resignation and to a conclave that changes the axis of the pontificate.

Benedicto left thinking that his line would be followed - his favorite candidate was Angelo Scola - but it was not like that.

If the pressure for his resignation grows and becomes strong, it will be a problem for the Pope.

Because the only condition of resignation is that it must be free.

So the more pressure you have, the more unthinkable that step aside will be.

The Pope cannot surrender to the will of others”, Melloni insists.

Francisco, at 86 years old, has some serious mobility problems that have prevented him from traveling and attending certain appointments.

Today he uses a wheelchair and walks from time to time with the help of a cane.

A fragile pope is not the best ally for the symbolism of power.

But himself, dispelling rumors that he is close to leaving, he highlighted in a recent interview with

that “the Church is not governed with the knee, but with the head”.

One of the people who knows him best and has studied his pontificate, his biographer Austen Ivereigh, has no doubt that "Benedict's death opens the way for him to resign when that time comes."

“It seemed inconceivable that he would do it with his predecessor alive from him.

But at the same time I think that he is a pontificate with a long way to go and I see Francisco better than last year in terms of health and energy, ”he points to the phone.

Reform of the emeritus papacy

The issue now, however, is the way in which a situation such as a papal resignation can be regulated -the last one before that of Benedict XVI in 2013 was that of Gregory XII in 1415-, which until now has generated a lot of confusion and wars. buried

Ivereigh senses that this will be the key.

“The interesting question is the subject of the reform of the institution of the emeritus papacy, which is only 10 years old.

It is clear that Francisco will reform it, but we will see how.

There is no doubt that he now has more freedom to do so [since he would not reveal Ratzinger's decision in 2013 to continue calling himself pope] and there will be a necessary reflection on the experience of these last 10 years.

He himself said that, if it is not undertaken, there is a risk of creating a parallel authority with the figure of the emeritus.

Benedict was always very loyal,

Francisco has given some clues about his hypothetical resignation in recent times.

Among other things, he pointed out that, if necessary, he would only decide to hold the title of bishop emeritus of Rome, he would dress in black and go to live outside the Vatican walls: probably in the Basilica of Saint John Lateran.

An obvious sign of the idea that he has about the interference that the poorly regulated figure of a pope emeritus could generate.

Massimo Faggioli, a theologian and professor at Villanova University (Philadelphia), believes that this aspect will be essential now.

“The real problem if Francisco decides to resign will be how he decides to do it.

And I don't see him locked up in a monastery like Benedict XVI.

He is a different man.

So what is interesting now is not if or when he will resign, but how he would do it.

Francis' pontificate, at least his agenda, is not over.

He still has to complete major reforms, such as the implementation of the new Apostolic Constitution.

And the Pope will have to deal with ideological issues of an opposite nature.

Beyond his ultra-conservative critics, he will also have to manage the disappointment of the German church with what are considered failed reforms and the German impulse to move much faster on fundamental issues for the opening of the Church towards society.

In fact, the Germans have begun a parallel synodal process that has openly and in-depth debated the need to ordain women, to bless gay couples, or to review mandatory priestly celibacy.

The Pope wants the Church to reflect on itself together in what he calls the synodal path, but the currents right now seem too far apart.

The final stretch of his pontificate, now without Ratzinger's gaze from the top of the Mater Ecclesiae [Mother Church] monastery, should deal with this issue.

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