New pope must continue old initiatives
while forging new path

By Daniel Conway

ROME—Everyone agrees that the next pope will have his hands full.

Not only must he follow in the footsteps of an inimitable, charismatic predecessor, but he must also address the unfinished business of the former pope—the agenda set forth in the apostolic letter At the Beginning of the New Millennium (“Novo Millennio Ineunte.”)

In addition, the new pope will have to face some issues that Pope John Paul II could not deal with precisely because they were the result of his own charismatic personality.

What is the unfinished business of John Paul II’s papacy? It is the continuing renewal of faith initiated by the Second Vatican Council and given dramatic new emphasis in the call to a New Evangeli-zation.

At the conclusion of the Great Jubilee Year of 2000, the Holy Father issued an invitation to all disciples of Christ at the beginning of the new millennium. He asked us to “start afresh from Christ” and to embrace the most fundamental facets of Christian life: the call to holiness and prayer, authentic celebration of the Sunday Eucharist and the sacrament of reconciliation, attentiveness to the word of God and the willingness to proclaim the Gospel, the practice of charity, and a continued outreach to other Christians and to people of faith everywhere.

This agenda will always be unfinished until the end of time, but there is urgent work to do now to spread the Gospel and to build up the City of God. Initiatives begun by Pope John Paul II will need to be consolidated and given new focus by the new successor of St. Peter.

Issues of growth and decline must be addressed in various regions of the world, and the challenges of life and death, war and peace, and the disparity between rich and poor, which are always with us, are serious problems that need to be addressed now.

In addition to the unfinished business of the Church at the beginning of the new millennium, the new pope must attend to some of the “problems” created by the previous pope’s personality and style of ministry.

The most serious criticism leveled against Pope John Paul II (by responsible critics) is that his charismatic personality drew too much attention to himself—and therefore away from local bishops, priests and lay leaders who are also called to exercise important leadership roles in the ministry of the Church.

With this criticism, many also call for renewed attention to the principles of collegiality and subsidiarity, which were given strong emphasis during and immediately following the Second Vatican Council.

Critics of John Paul II say that precisely because he was a good and holy man, who touched the lives of countless millions of people throughout the world, he impeded rather than facilitated the collegiality called for by Vatican II, centralizing authority in the Vatican and diminishing the role of local bishops and national or regional conferences of bishops.

To say that Pope John Paul II was “too charismatic” is probably an understatement. Given the fact that modern means of communication made it possible for him to reach millions and millions of people in every corner of the globe, he was clearly one of the most charismatic human beings who ever lived.

Jesus, and the Apostles and saints, grew in influence after they died, but none of them had the broad-based influence of John Paul II during their lifetimes!

I am not suggesting that the pope was more important—or more influential—than the Lord he served. But it is clearly true that no Church leader since the dawning of the first millennium has been better known or more instantly loved than this great man.

That is a wonderful thing precisely because he used his influence to proclaim Christ, but it is also something of a problem for the next pope, who in all likelihood will not have the many diverse charisms of John Paul II.

This is a problem for the next pope’s successor the way Blessed Mother Teresa was a problem for her successor or St. Francis was a problem for the Franciscans.

How do you accept all the wonderful and holy things that have taken place because of the sanctity and the charismatic zeal of John Paul II and “institutionalize” them for the sake of the Church’s future?

Certainly, we should not expect the next pope to mimic John Paul II. That would lead to a failure of collossal proportions! The new pope will have to be himself. He will have to let the Holy Spirit use him (with all his unique strengths and weaknesses) to lead the Church in his own way.

The new pope is blessed to have the example, and the agenda, of Pope John Paul II. But he must never feel oppressed by the old pope’s charismatic style or expect that he will be held to the same standard.

The serious work that remains to be done is bigger and more important than any one person—no matter how holy or beloved. That’s why the Lord continues to lead his Church through the ups and downs of our human history—and through the weaknesses and strengths of the individuals he calls to be the successors of the Apostles.

We thank God for the gift of Pope John Paul II. We pray for the new pope (and for the cardinals who must elect him). But we also know by faith that the Church of Christ does not depend on the individual gifts or defects of any individual or group. At the beginning of this new millennium, we know with confidence that God will provide whatever gifts and charisms are needed to proclaim the Good News and to carry on the work of salvation in Jesus’ name.

As Pope John Paul II said so eloquently, “The words of Jesus invite us to remember the past with gratitude, to live the present with enthusiasm, and to look to the future with confidence: Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever!” (“Novo Millennio Inuente,” #1).

(Daniel Conway, a member of the editorial committee of the board of directors of Criterion Press Inc., is in Rome for the pope’s funeral and is serving as our special correspondent.) †