Pope will guide Church through tough times, says Archbishop

Archbishop of Dublin Dr Diarmuid Martin tonight said Pope Benedict’s choice of name was a clear message of how he would lead the Catholic Church.

Archbishop Martin said the Pontiff would guide the church through challenging times and highlight the need for strong values.

“The choice of the name Benedict is a clear indication, for example, of a desire that a future Europe be clearly a Europe of values,” Archbishop Martin said.

He told worshippers at the Pro-Cathedral in Dublin that Pope Benedict XVI had responded to the indications of the spirit and accepted his new responsibilities.

“Pope Benedict is a scholar with a remarkable gift of language in expressing deep insights into the faith,” the Archbishop said.

“He is a reserved person, with great human warmth, a simple almost frugal style of life, a man of prayer and spiritual depth.”

The hundreds who attended the Solemn Mass of Thanksgiving heard how Pope Benedict XVI was devoted to Saint Benedict, who had played an extraordinary role in Christian renewal around Europe in the 5th century.

Saint Benedict, founder of the Benedictine Order, is understood to have done much to preserve Christianity during the Dark Ages.

The Archbishop said Pope Benedict XVI faced the challenge of leading the Church in the coming years in a complex, cultural context.

He said the cultures of our times must be examined and discerned in terms of how they foster human dignity.

Archbishop Martin described the Pontiff as a man of extraordinary intellect, of deep spirituality and of exceptional theological knowledge.

And he noted his commitment to peace and his role as a reconciler within the Church.

“He will do so perhaps in a different manner than his immediate predecessor, relying perhaps on that extraordinary gift that he has received for spirituality, reflection and interiority,” he said.