Amazing. I cannot believe this is all happening in my lifetime. I got home almost midnight last Tuesday, and the breaking news on CNN and BBC was that white smoke was coming out of the chimney at the Vatican. In Rome, the people are in chaos. Even TV audience such as myself could not escape the excitement and thrill of anticipation. Outside my room I can hear my father's enthusiasm as he followed the event on the living room TV. Thanks to technology, the whole world is connected and we got to experience what could be the biggest event in Christianity for this decade.
We have a new pope. A few minutes after the bells rung at the Vatican, Joseph Ratzinger was introduced to the world as Pope Benedict XVI. I do not mean to offend whatsoever, but something in the new Pope's face scares me. He strikes me as a man with an iron fist. Christianity surely needs a ruler who can make people return to Church and recover their faith in the Almighty. In a time where all inocence is lost, Pope Benedict faces a huge challenge. Some people say that the Catholic Church has been left behind because of its resistance to change. The world is evolving and the church has to effectively evolve with it.
A new Pope signifies a new beginning in the history of the church. I just hope that in his time, Pope Benedict XVI musters the strength, courage and determination that John Paul II had to bring the world together and restore the faiths of the many people who have lost their way in the course of coping with life's challenges.
