Reply #5: Weren't you the poster who first linked to the

[DemBones DemBones]

Pope-U-Lator? 'Cause I gotta tell you, I played around with it a good bit and the only cardinal who came out in the top five for BOTH a progressive and a conservative agenda was Ratzinger. He also came out in the top five for theological knowledge/ depth and for administrative skills. Assuming the person(s) who programmed the Pope-U-Lator knew what was what with the cardinals, that's why the cardinals chose this man. That and the faith that John Paul II had in him.

I think he'll support the Church's teachings, including Vatican II. I think he'll be ecumenical, since that's an area he worked in after Vatican II, and I think he'll pay more attention to managing the Church than John Paul II did. I also read that he wrote something suggesting that annulments could/ should be easier to get. If he makes any big changes, my guess would be allowing priests to marry, due to the shortage of priests. I could also see him clamping down on seminaries to make sure that seminarians are getting proper formation for the priesthood, because he's had to deal with the problem priests, including the pedophiles, in his assignment under John Paul II.

Another thing I read was that he'll be better-informed to make episcopal appointments -- John Paul II made some bad choices.