Benedict's 'quiet charisma'

Reuters

Pope Benedict's disarming presence, his undisputed humility, the beauty and precision of his words and the gentleness of his demeanor continue to win him new admirers. Have you noticed how even the critics in the media are finding it increasingly difficult not to say positive things about Benedict XVI?

From THE TELEGRAPH ...

By attracting a million people to his open-air Mass outside Cologne - and effortlessly holding their attention - Pope Benedict XVI has passed the first big test of his pontificate. But this public relations triumph probably matters far less to him than the task of internal reform that lies ahead.

He knows how stage-managed these events are - and he has no intention of attending as many of them as John Paul II. Underlying this pope's quiet charisma is a determination to rejuvenate an institution that, throughout the west, has been gravely damaged by sexual scandal, episcopal incompetence, ugly services and falling Mass attendance.

Hence his admission at a prayer vigil on Saturday night that there was "much that could be criticised" in the Church. "We know this and the Lord himself told us so: it is a net with good and bad fish," he said.