The Pope

It has just been reported that The Pope had a pacemaker implanted in 2005. I knew we were in great company!!

Grateful Heart


20 Comments

That explains it !

by IAN MC - 2013-02-12 01:02:32

He said " I am too frail in mind and body to carry on "

I wonder if he should have had Rate Response switched on ?

Ian

secrecy

by Tracey_E - 2013-02-12 02:02:36

Am I the only one wondering why they kept it a secret until now? What's the big deal?? First Pope stepping down in 600 years, and he has pacemaker! It seems like odd timing to me, like there's an implication pacemaker equals frail, or the pm is at fault or something. I dunno, maybe I'm reading too much into it :)

The Pope

by Hope - 2013-02-12 03:02:03

I love fun and laughter. But, please, of all people, can we not refer to the Pope with respect and understanding. This could not have been an easy decision to step down. Let us honor his service with a pacemaker, not pick apart when and or why it became known.

AV Node Ablation

by ebfox - 2013-02-12 04:02:03

There is a report on another website that says he has had a number of strokes in the last 5 years and currently suffers from persistent afib. The speculation is that he had an AV Node ablation at some point, but he refuses coumadin due to the earlier strokes.

I am not Catholic but as Hope says, he deserves respect; obviously he does not have much time left and his decision to resign had to be terribly difficult. I expect it was the right thing for his Church.

Respect ..... Why ?

by IAN MC - 2013-02-12 06:02:05

Why should we respect a man who heads up an organisation which has turned a blind eye to child abuse by its members for years and years ?

Why should we respect a man who heads up an organisation whose rigid policies on birth control have increased poverty in many parts of the world ?

I wish him well with his PM , as I would any member of the PM club.... but " Respect " ... definitely not !

Ian

timing

by Tracey_E - 2013-02-12 07:02:00

I didn't think his timing for stepping down was odd, I thought it was a strange time to suddenly say he's had a pm for years. If they kept it quiet this long, why bother releasing the information now? I say this with curiosity, not disrespect.

I have a lot of respect for his decision. I think the idea of staying until death is antiquated and it does a disservice to everyone once he's too ill to serve, so good on him for breaking tradition.

Mr Pope.............

by Tattoo Man - 2013-02-12 07:02:22


...................word is that Herr Pope had a Union issue and fell out with Health and safety and also Work and Pensions,..on top of this Work Guidelines and those irritating guys with the pom-pom shoes.

I am a Catholic ,..but, hey...I can still.....................

understand that his Pension Pot puts him below the breadline....

Like the 50 Zxillion that he speaks for

Read this soon because I m going to be SO chopped off

And why..Land of the Free..???

TM..with the greatest of respects

Tracey

by Grateful Heart - 2013-02-12 07:02:28

Glad to hear it! :)



The Pope

by Grateful Heart - 2013-02-12 07:02:35

The Pope is a head of state (Vatican City). It is not uncommon for a head of state to have medical procedures kept private. Funny, people think nothing of a "celebrity" keeping their medical conditions private.

Odd timing? I think the timing is he is 89 years old and has other medical conditions as well. His Doctors have advised him to take it easy, so he made a very unselfish and difficult decision.

God Bless The Pope

Grateful Heart

well i respect and love the pope

by jessie - 2013-02-13 01:02:35

even tho the catholic church has had some utterly awful priests who did harm to children you cannot blame the pope or anyone else except the people who were the perpetrators. this pope aplogized and said he did not know. in canada it was a terrible scandal especially when the natives were sent to residential schools and abused. and in newfoundland it was a horrible story. even here in my community i know people who were abused. my catholic church and what it stands for is another matter. you have to place principles above personalities and while there are humans on this earth there will be sin. all we can do is change how priests are monitored. when my children were growing up they were not allowed to go to nursery in the church during mass and they were holy terrors and i was criticized but i had a grandmother who told me that when my dad was 12 the priest had wanted to take him and some other boys to toronto to watch the maple leafs play hockey. my grandmother was a widow and she said no as she had heard some rumours about this particular priest. she was ahead of her time for sure and a lot of parents did not believe this would happen . so they abused their power as priests and hsould be prosecuted and restitution made.the priests in my parish are definetley not child abusers. it only takes a few rotten apples to spoil the bushel. so i will continue to love and respect the pope in spite of what happened and continue to love my catholic faith. jessie

i was told that i am compromised

by jessie - 2013-02-13 01:02:52

some of my friends say that i am compromized by having a pacemaker. i do not believe this. they said my immune system is low because of it. i happened to get shingles twice and yes i was sick. otherwise i feel great. i received the shingles shot now so should not get it again or if i do it will be mild. i know this is off the topic of the pope and i am only 71 but would appreciate some feedback on this.

Well said Selwyn !

by IAN MC - 2013-02-13 03:02:00

I agree with every point you have made, particularly your second paragraph " The big question is whether he took the appropriate action, once he had knowledge of child abuse in the church"

I can't help feeling that he said the right words but there was zero action !

I'm sure he's a good man and I hope he has a good long retirement.

Ian

Hi Jessie

by IAN MC - 2013-02-13 05:02:01

i) In answer to your question re your immune system. There is absolutely no way that a PM could affect it.... tell your friends that they are talking rubbish . The immune system relies on things like lymphocytes ( made by the lymph glands ) and other types of blood cell which combat infection. The electrical system of the heart is simply not related to this.

ii) Canada, Newfoundland were not unique in having Catholic priests abusing children unfortunately. It seems to be a systemic problem running throughout the catholic church in every country in the world. To say that only the perpetrators knew about it, and that the guys at the top were blameless is hard to believe. It is a bit like saying that the bosses of the banks weren't aware of all the corrupt practices going on at grass-roots level.

Hope you're well

Ian

Selwyn and IAN...............

by Tattoo Man - 2013-02-13 05:02:02


...........................I stand here in complete accord with your views.........

I was raised with very high Catholic ideals.

I will address the Pearly Gates with more questions than answers.

My Mum, ..who had been a Carmelite Noviciate..reckoned on loads of ladders up to Heaven..I realy look forward to the afterlife so I can share a beer with Muslims,.. Janes,..Prodestants,..Catholics,..Moors,..7th day Adventists,..Ford car salesmen,..NatWest Dealers..sad old runners from Notfast Running Club...dregs...

How many out there have seen ...DEAD

Overrated in my view

TM



Mr Pope

by Tattoo Man - 2013-02-13 05:02:21

This is not about Faith,.. or any Individual, decked out with fancy clothes and a gold staff.

Its about an institution

For those with the stomach for it..just click on .

Magdalene Laundry

30,000 women over 74 years with State approval.

And we thought that Slavery was a thing of the past.

Shame on us all..and shame on those that saw and walked by

TM

Blame people not religion.

by Selwyn - 2013-02-13 12:02:51

Quite clearly no person advertises the fact that they abuse children. This secretive activity may well be difficult to have knowledge of until the damage is done, and then be reported. The awareness is always after the event. Poor head of organisation! ( in this case the Pope). They really rely on the morality of individuals.

The big question is whether he took the appropriate action to protect children, once he had knowledge of child abuse in the Church.

In Rochdale, UK a paedophile ring has just been given a long prison term- they are all Muslims. My experience, (as a forensic examiner) was seeing the abused back passage of a 12 year old who had sought sanctuary with the Salvation Army, and was abused.

Let us blame individuals. The bible teaching with regard to sexual morality is there for all to follow, should we be talking about Abrahamic faiths. Whether individuals choose to do so is a matter for their own understanding of what is right and wrong.

There is no doubt that stress ( with the release of substances like adrenaline) causes cardiac arrhythmias.
Poor Pope, as a religious person of sincerity, how can he feel about people that have let him down?

He is to be congratulated for getting out so that the Church can be managed by those with more energy- it is a very hard thing to do to give up authority.

Well done the Pope for having the insight of his management. He is 89, we can only hope his pace-maker is trouble free as he goes to meet his maker, slowly!

Tattoo Man

by IAN MC - 2013-02-14 04:02:37

i notice in your long list of people that you will share a beer with in the Pearly Gates Tavern you did not include people from the PM club. Is it something we've said ??

..... oh, hang on, I've just re-read your list of drinking companions...we are there in the "dregs" section.

Frank is certain he will be somewhere else, so that is one less beer for you to buy !

Cheers

Ian

IAN MC.................................

by Tattoo Man - 2013-02-14 06:02:16


.................................'dregs'...my Collins Dictionary defines this word as 'Despicable People'.......................so we now find ourselves facing the truth that it is only Saint Frank, Patron Saint of Aircon that will not be climbing that ladder to the Pearly Gates Tavern.

Frank...I promise that,as the Ozzies would say, " I'll blow the froth off a few in your honour "

Tattoo Man...off for a weekend in the beautiful Eskdale

Different Direction

by ElectricFrank - 2013-02-14 12:02:04

I understand they have me scheduled for the opposite direction than the Pearly Gates. They need an engineer to fix the air conditioners that have been broken for eternities.

frank

Great Climate

by ElectricFrank - 2013-02-16 01:02:46

You forget how well the suds ferment in that hot climate.
As soon as I fix the A/C I can cool it down and have all I want.

My mother used to tell me that I had no "couth".

frank

You know you're wired when...

Born to be Wired is your theme song.

Member Quotes

Yesterday was my first day mountain biking after my implant. I wiped out several times and everything is fine. There are sports after pacemakers!