Wolves

(•Link: Overheard in the Sacristy)

"Pray for me that I may not flee for fear of the wolves." 

— Benedict XVI  • April 24, 2005 

When I saw this post over at "Overheard in the Sacristy" I had to re-post it here. Most of us are familiar with the above quote from Pope Benedict at his first Mass during his pontificate. Reflecting on it now, more than 5 years later has become quite popular in the Catholic blog world. Why?

If you look at the quote, in the context of 5 years ago, you view it at the end of Pope John Paul II's pontificate, which was viewed by many mainstream Catholics as an "insta-Saint." So, the idea that their were 'wolves' within the Church seemed rhetorical, if not ludicrous for many. Yet, Pope Benedict chose his words carefully, as he always does. So, he had to to have said it for a reason, and he did.

He saw the landscape before him. A modern world that now reveled in the internet, email, cellphones, facebook, blogs, and most of all a 24 hour news cycle. He saw the 'wolves' that were, waiting, circling, and desperate. Only, they weren't on the outside looking in; he saw them where they were - on the inside  wearing sheep's clothing.

Today, now more than 5 years later, many of us are finally understanding how true those words really were. Some may say they were prophetic, I believe he was describing what he saw and not what he foresaw. He recognized the terrors that existed in the Church. Many who think that Pope John Paul II was 'weak' because so much rampant modernism grew during his pontificate, fail to realize how much he actually did from causing the entire Church to schism. That being said, Benedict realized that if John Paul was glue that held the Church together, his death did not bring with it the end to the threat.

As we move into this pontificate further and further, we lose more and more of the 'seeds' of dissent that blossomed into outright heresy and heterodoxy during John Paul II's pontificate. Much like wolves, these  scavengers become desperate as the pack dwindles, their existence desires their own way of life, hence the lone wolf. Yet, to survive they must run as a pack, or else they become the hunted. Therefore the further and further we get from the 2nd Vatican council, the 1960's & 1970's the less and less wolves there are in positions of power and influence. So they are desperate, therefore as their numbers dwindle their attacks will rise in number and intensity. It is therefore our job to remain diligent and dutiful in or prayers for the Pope and Holy Mother Church.