This pope could be your life

That seemed quick, but Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was named pope today, in the second day of the conclave. Now comes the American reaction, in which I assume millions of Americans will complain that he's too conservative to represent their brand of Catholicism. To which the world Catholic community will reply, "Get over it."

Two-thirds of the Catholic community (and I'm sure this is also true of the lower-case catholic church, too) can be found in the Southern Hemisphere, and possess a theology much more conservative than that found in Europe and the United States. North American Christians need to get a hold of this one fact: even though we like to believe we're at the forefront of Christian thought, when it comes to sheer numbers, we hold no monopoly on interpreting revelation. It's arrogance bordering on racism -- a belief born out of the scientific and philosophical "advancements" of the Western world -- that they somehow make us superior when compared to the "ignorance" of the Third-world church.

But as far as our voice can be heard amongst clatter of the worldwide church, we're really on the fringe.

Get over it.