Sorry wait can i ask about catholicism? (Pls feel free to ignore of youd rather not, no pressure)
The pope chooses a name? The last popes name wasnt actually Francis? Why??? I assume they pick a Saint name but like.... whats wrong with their own personal name?
Thanks, hope youre having a decent day.
Turtle i saw at work for tax <3
Hey there - yeah, kinda like Kings / Queens choose a regnant name, Popes choose a Papal name. Although, this may also be something you're unfamiliar with, given the last King and Queen of England have both chosen to use their own names as their regnal names. But Queen Elizabeth's father was Albert but adopted the name "George" as King - "to emphasise continuity with his father and restore confidence in the monarchy." In Catholicism, it's a tradition that developed after a few centuries and an oft-cited reason is that Jesus called the first "pope" a new name - "Peter" rather than his given name "Simon."
Bible verse: "Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah,[a] the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter,[b] and on this rock[c] I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it."
I throw quotes around the word "Pope" up there because Peter was a leader of early Christianity, but the tradition of the Papacy didn't really solidify until the 400s. The Catholic Church, however, draws the line of the Papacy to Peter through all the early Bishops of Rome - which remains the official role of the Pope. The Pope is the Bishop of Rome. Anyway, back to the point, the choosing of a new name symbolizes the beginning of the new role and Popes will choose their names to signify their intent and inspiration as new Pope. I don't know how familiar you are with Catholicism, but one sacrament of the Catholic Church is Confirmation wherein members of the Church become recognized as adults. As a part of this tradition, believers will choose a Saint that they draw inspiration from or feel represents a need in their life and will take the name of that Saint as their Confirmation name. Not one they'll use in real life, but they are called by that name during the Confirmation mass.
For example, as a wayward youth I was constantly losing things (whoot undiagnosed ADHD!), and St. Anthony is the Patron Saint of Lost Things, so my Confirmation name is Anthony. So again, Popes will pick a new name that signifies the beginning of their new life as Pope and that is usually significant to them personally and as a signifier of the kind of values they hold / ideals they aspire to. In this case, the previous Pope Leo - Pope Leo XIII (Pope from 1878 - 1903) was known for his modernism (of the time) and intellectualism. "In his famous 1891 encyclical Rerum novarum, Pope Leo outlined the rights of workers to a fair wage, safe working conditions, and the formation of trade unions, while affirming the rights to property and free enterprise, opposing both socialism and laissez-faire capitalism." He is also "particularly remembered for his belief that pastoral activity in political sociology was also a vital mission of the church as a vehicle of social justice and maintaining the rights and dignities of the human person." (same source as prev).
So we might hopefully anticipate then that Pope XIV (birth name: Robert Prevost) intends to focus on the well being of the poor and the rights of the working people of the world - which would be a continuation of Francis' general direction.
Pope Francis' name btw was originally Jorge Mario Bergoglio. He was the first pope to choose the name Francis. St. Francis was creator of the Franciscan order - an order known for its devotion to poverty, chastity, & obedience. I think we can see that Pope Francis was devoted to care for the poor - as much as any Pope can be.
Anyway, that was a crazy long answer, but hopefully informative. I should say here that I have not been a practicing Catholic in almost 10 years - haven't been religious in any meaningful way for almost as long - but I do have 2 theological degrees with a foci on Church history. So I'm not speaking out of my ass here. While I may no longer be a member of the Catholic Church, as an activist, I am deeply interested in the Papacy as an indicator of direction for the Catholic Church. Because, like it or not, it will be a driving force on the world stage. It is better for the world to have a good Pope than a rigid conservative Pope. I am optimistic - given his opening address and name choice - that Pope Leo XIV may be a better Pope than some of the options we were spared would have been.
In the Papacy, much like politics in general, a liberal is often followed by a conservative - to get a centrist with SOME liberal leanings, is a far better outcome than what we could have had. Imagine if we'd had another Ratzinger aka Pope Benedict?
Oh and cute turtle. <3
