In Brief... World News Review: Pontiff Health Woes Signal Leadership Change
Only resignation or death can end a papacy.
There has been great concern for some time now over the health problems of 81-year-old Pope John Paul II. A few years ago the Roman Catholic leader was struck by unusual fevers, stomach viruses and heavy cases of the flu, and many worried he might die suddenly.
The formerly athletic, but now ailing pontiff is showing the effects of Parkinson's disease, and some feel he might slip into incapacitation and leave the Catholic Church in the hands of subordinates. Parkinson's is a disease of the nervous system which causes uncontrollable shaking and cognitive problems.
Information from inside the Vatican walls hints that he travels the long corridors not by foot but by electric cart. When meetings prove too long for him, orders are issued from his quarters by aides who are coordinated by his personal secretary, Bishop Stanislaw Dziwisz.
There exists no law or regulation within the church to prevent this, and for the moment, only resignation or death can end a papacy. This pope has made it clear he does not intend to resign.
An Article from:
World News and Prophecy: November 2001
Course Content
Jim Tuck
Jim has been in the ministry over 40 years serving fifteen congregations. He and his wife, Joan, started their service to God's church in Pennsylvania in 1974. Both are graduates of Ambassador University. Over the years they served other churches in Alabama, Idaho, Oregon, Arizona, California, and currently serve the Phoenix congregations in Arizona, as well as the Hawaii Islands. He has had the opportunity to speak in a number of congregations in international areas of the world. They have traveled to Zambia and Malawi to conduct leadership seminars In addition, they enjoy working with the youth of the church and have served in youth camps for many years.
John Ross Schroeder
John died on March 8, 2014, in Oxford, England, four days after suffering cardiac arrest while returning home from a press event in London. John was 77 and still going strong.
Some of John's work for The Good News appeared under his byline, but much didn't. He wrote more than a thousand articles over the years, but also wrote the Questions and Answers section of the magazine, compiled our Letters From Our Readers, and wrote many of the items in the Current Events and Trends section. He also contributed greatly to a number of our study guides and Bible Study Course lessons. His writing has touched the lives of literally millions of people over the years.
John traveled widely over the years as an accredited journalist, especially in Europe. His knowledge of European and Middle East history added a great deal to his articles on history and Bible prophecy.
In his later years he also pastored congregations in Northern Ireland and East Sussex, and that experience added another dimension to his writing. He and his wife Jan were an effective team in our British Isles office near their home.
John was a humble servant who dedicated his life to sharing the gospel—the good news—of Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God to all the world, and his work was known to readers in nearly every country of the world.
