Such Strange Goings-On

Cardinal Ratzinger, the future Pope Benedict XVI, asked John Paul II to let him retire no fewer than three times: in 1992, after suffering a stroke; in 1994, having gone partly blind; and in 1997, on reaching the age of 70. Each time the pontiff refused and asked him not to trouble himself with further petitions, saying: "I want you to stay with me until the end." Ratzinger was elected Pope in 2005.

Cardinal Bergoglio offered his resignation as Archbishop of Buenos Aires to Pope Benedict XVI in 2011, on reaching the age of 75, as is canonical practice for bishops. But Benedict XVI did not accept it, and Bergoglio remained a bishop until he became Pope Francis I in 2013.

Robert Prevost was created a cardinal in September 2023. I am not sure he would have had time to offer his resignation, though perhaps these details are yet to be revealed to us.

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September digest: archaeological finds, exhibitions, museums, theatre and the Church

In the finale of the Strugatskys' Roadside Picnic, the Golden Ball is told: "Happiness for everybody, free, and let nobody go away unsatisfied!" I do not promise to offend nobody, but the digest really does come free of charge. So, here is the main business of the

Frederic Leighton

Frederic Leighton. “Daedalus and Icarus”, 1869 Daedalus warns his son not to climb too high: the heat of the sun may melt the wax, but Icarus is already gazing into the distance, and the lamentations of a foolish old man interest him not in the least

Such Strange Goings-On

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September digest: archaeological finds, exhibitions, museums, theatre and the Church

Frederic Leighton

Attempts to resolve the problems of many years of uncontrolled mass migration

Characters from Gogol's "Petersburg Tales" on the pedestal of the monument to Nikolai Gogol on Nikitsky Boulevard, photograph of the 1960s