what does the pope actually DO?

Question

just out of curiosity.

Answer 1

One way to describe the pope might be to say that he is the legal and spiritual head of the Roman Catholic Church, at 1 billion members the largest Christian denomination in the world, and certainly the most vertically integrated. One way of putting the point: the pope can push a button in Rome and see something happen in Singapore in ways that the archbishop of Canterbury or the Dalai Lama cannot.

Many of these burdens are similar to demands imposed on other world leaders, such as the president of the United States or the secretary general of the United Nations. One key difference is that the pope, in addition to being a politician and administrator, is also expected to be extraordinarily holy. People might forgive a president all sorts of moral failings, but they have higher standards for pontiffs. Another is that being elected pope is, in effect, a life sentence-there's no retirement to anticipate, no comfortable years as an elder statesman writing memoirs and giving lucrative speeches at foreign policy seminars. Popes carry the burden of their office until they die.

For all these reasons, being pope is an impossible job, and despite what you may hear, few church leaders actually want it. Mastering any one of its elements is a life's work. Inevitably, popes emphasize some aspects of the job at the expense of others.

In reality, however, the demands of the position are far more vast. A modern pope is called upon to be an intellectual, a politician, a pastor, a media superstar, and a Fortune 500 CEO. He must produce complex documents setting out the thinking of the Catholic Church on the most vexing problems that confront humanity. While he has a staff and as many advisers as he wants to help with writing and research, ultimately the message is for him to determine. He must oversee the work of the oldest diplomatic corps on earth, involved in mediating conflicts and protecting the institutional interests of the Catholic Church in dozens of global hot spots. On any given day, the pope may be briefed about the latest violence in the Middle East, about Muslim-Christian slaughter in Indonesia, and about the role of Western commercial interests in sustaining the civil war in the Congo. Then he will be expected to make decisions. If he does too little, he will be accused of indifference; if he does too much, he will be accused of meddling. The pope must be a skilled public figure who knows how to use, rather than be used by, the global communications industry. If he shrinks from publicity, they will say he is weak; if he courts it, they will say he's an egomaniac. Finally, the pope must manage the personnel and financial resources of an enormous multinational religious organization. Since to govern is to choose, as de Gaulle once said, some of those choices are bound to make people unhappy

Answer 2

First of all, the answers above of me are stupid and gay like the people, except for imacatholic2. His answer made the most sense

The pope is the leader of the Roman catholic church.
You cannot call him God or else God will be displeased.
The Pope is there for us to teach us about God

You know what sucks? My answer is better that most of the adults anwer here and I'm only 11!

Answer 3

purely because of the fact they have a great deal of statues does not advise they only pray to Mary. They probably purely have a solid devotion to Mary. The Pope, isn't paid. each and every thing is given to him. And in case you prefer to verify the RCC is a pretend faith, you're asking the incorrect question. this is not a pretend faith.

Answer 4

What does the Pope do?

The Pope is leader of the Catholic Church, the world's largest group of Christians.
His decisions affect over a billion followers around the world.

He's also in charge of the world's smallest country. It's called Vatican City.

The Vatican is so small that it's inside Rome, the capital city of Italy.

Answer 5

the pope is christs earthly representative. he teaches, leads and guides the faithful. on these matters he is infallible(without error). here are some sites that will help explain this to you in more detail,including the scriptural support

www.scripturecatholic.com
www.catholiceducation.org
www.fisheaters.com
www.ewtn.com

hope this helps and god bless, these sites will cover other topics you may be interested in regarding the catholic church.

Answer 6

Gets away with bigotry that others would be attacked over. Lets people die due to stopping condoms being allowed. Suck up money like a sponge. Gets to protect all those religious peadophiles whuilst persecuting people. Gets to wear and play with all those riches whilst people starve. Ratty gets away with bieng an ex-nazi. Says everyone's going to hell

Answer 7

The pope smiles at people and mumbles incoherent replies to their questions. He waves at everyone he sees, thinking that they are his friends. He wears white robes and is waited on hand and foot whilst he talks to an imaginary friend.
Just like any other, senile old bugger, in nursing homes all over the world.

Answer 8

fisselig. An untranslatable colloquial adjective meaning either a permanent state of inexactitude and sloppiness or a temporary one of nervousness and absence of composure brought about by another person's nagging. 'Jittery", "flustered" give some idea of its meaning (Cassells Colloquial German, 1992).

Answer 9

sist on his fat crinkly **** and dicatates to the worlds catholics what to do - like his own secret army, and hes german

hmmmm very suspicious

Answer 10

He quite often gets rat-arsed on Jesus Juice, then reminisces about zee good old dayz of zee var.