Today, we’re talking to our good friend Rob Corzine, vice president of Academic Programs at the St. Paul Center, about conclaves past and present, and how despite humanity’s best efforts, the Holy Spirit proves again and again that he is in charge. And our apologies that this episode is dropping later than promised. We decided we wanted to wait until after Pope Francis funeral to drop an episode that was so heavy on conclave talk!

Show Notes:

Good Pope, Bad Pope: Their Lives, Our Lessons by Mike Aquilina

Discovering the Doctors and Hildegard of Bingen by Emily Stimpson Chapman

“I would not say so, in the sense that the Holy Spirit picks out the Pope. . . . I would say that the Spirit does not exactly take control of the affair, but rather like a good educator, as it were, leaves us much space, much freedom, without entirely abandoning us. Thus the Spirit’s role should be understood in a much more elastic sense, not that he dictates the candidate for whom one must vote. Probably the only assurance he offers is that the thing cannot be totally ruined. . . . There are too many contrary instances of popes the Holy Spirit obviously would not have picked!” Pope Benedict XVI

A Jubilee Christmas

The Chapman family us heading to Rome on December 26 to spend 10 days soaking in the beauty of Rome at Christmas, celebrating the end of the Jubilee Year, and ringing in the New Year with our new Holy Father (!). We would love to have you join us. The pilgrimage is filling up fast, but we still have room for a couple more families (or quite a few singles or several couples). There are so many graces to be had on pilgrimage—graces of friendship, of learning, of beauty, and worshipping at the very heart of the Church. These pilgrimages are never easy to embark on. Sacrifice is always involved. But if God is calling you to go, this is one journey you won’t regret. You can learn more here.

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