September 30, 2013

Be still, my heart!

You wake up, you think it's going to be just another ho-hum day, and suddenly the news hits you in the head.
Popes John Paul II and John XXIII will be declared saints on April 27, 2014. 
Could anything be more exciting? Doubtful.
Francis had announced in July he would canonize two of the 20th century's most influential popes together, approving a miracle attributed to John Paul's intercession and bending Vatican rules by deciding that John XXIII didn't need one. 
Meh, miracles and rules. Who needs them? We've got saints to make.
John Paul made Jorge Mario Bergoglio — the current Pope Francis — a cardinal. Francis' immense popular appeal has also been likened to that of John XXIII, dubbed the "good pope." 
I guess the "good pope" monicker was meant to distinguish him from the many bad popes, such as (to choose a contemporary example) Benedict the Nazi. It makes me wonder what Obama would do if he could make saints of previous presidents. Who would he choose? I figure George W. Bush and Ronald Reagan. Who do you think Obama would anoint with the magic Sainting Scepter?

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