He says there can be little doubt that in many ways the new Pope will follow John Paul II. Throughout the last pontificate, "John Paul was the supreme philosopher and Ratzinger the supreme theologian. They complemented each other and worked hand in hand."
Will this result in a haemorrhage of young people from the church, as some predict? If the papacy of John Paul II is anything to go by, I doubt it. Although there may have been a slow decline in church attendance in Australia during the past few decades, this is not the case elsewhere. There is also evidence of an increasing openness in young people to the values professed by the Church.
A recent internal survey by the US Democratic Party, for example, found that, in contrast to their elders, most Catholics under 30 espouse pro-life views. Here in Australia, dioceses with Bishops in place who have clearly and strongly followed the lead of John Paul II have experienced an increase in the number of seminarians. This bodes well for the Church both here and abroad.
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On behalf of the JPII generation, thank you, John Paul II, and welcome Benedict XVI.
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