My opinion?

Media say Pope may resign in April

First of all, I am anything but a 'Vatican insider', so my opinion is just that, my opinion. Secondly, the media has a tendency to blow things out of proportion and get things incredibly wrong, and they certainly don't let that stand in the way of a sensational story.

Having said that, I find it hard to believe that a Pope who holds so strongly to the traditions of the Church and the Papacy would be the first Pope in modern times (if ever, I'm not a papal historian either) to 'retire' before death. Pope Benedict XVI has always followed the more traditional route and the retirement of a pope is not the traditional route, so while he holds the papacy in great regard, as he does everything in the Church, I can't see him retiring unless it becomes a critical necessity. He may look at his predecessor and friend, Pope John Paul II, and think that if he is able to maintain the position despite his health problems, then he can as well (though he does acknowledge the extreme holiness of his predecessor).

Time will tell. My current opinion? Oink, flap, oink, flap...

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