78-Year-Old Pope Predicts Short Reign

Health concerns are surfacing about the newly-elected Pope Benedict XVI -- who told cardinals shortly after his election that his reign would probably be a "short" one.

The new pontiff is 78 years old and those who know him say he has a "delicate constitution."

Benedict is the oldest pontiff elected in 275 years. He suffered a hemorrhagic stroke in 1991, but there have been no lingering health problems from that episode. A fall in 1992 knocked him unconscious and produced severe bleeding.

Rev. Georg Ratzinger says his brother's health is good, but he is concerned about the toll the stress of his new assignment may take.

Cardinals who know the new pope say he is likely to travel less than Pope John Paul did in the early years of his papacy. But they say Benedict has a lot of energy.

Of course, most don't know Benedict as well as the cardinals who elected him. A quick poll shows Catholics in the United States are open to the new pope, but aren't ready to decide if they like him or not.

Nearly 60 percent of American Catholics who were surveyed told researchers they don't know enough to have a positive or negative opinion of Pope Benedict XVI. But that same percentage said they think he'll do more to unite than divide the church.

The Gallup poll for USA Today and CNN indicated that 47 percent of American Catholics don't know if he'll move Catholicism in the right or wrong direction. Two-thirds said they are confident he will handle well the problem of child molestation by priests.

Researchers polled 616 Catholics.

U.S. Cardinals Predict Catholics Will Warm To New Pope

Two leading American cardinals said Pope Benedict isn't the cold disciplinarian many believe him to be.

New York Cardinal Edward Egan called the new pope "loving and lovely." And he added that he will "play well as soon as people come to know him."

Philadelphia Cardinal Justin Rigali said Benedict has the "human touch."

Some American Catholics had hoped for a more liberal successor to Pope John Paul II.

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But others are delighted that Pope Benedict XVI has a history of upholding church teachings against the militant secularism of modern culture.

But some American Catholics may be slow to warm to the former German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. Liberals note that he has taken a hard line against gay relationships and has warned voters they would be "cooperating in evil" by backing a politician who supported abortion rights.

The Rev. Thomas Reese, editor of the Jesuit magazine America, said conservative Catholics "are going to love" the new pope.

Germans Proud Of New Pope, Amid Misgivings

From Germans, there's both pride and disappointment in the selection of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as the new pope. He's a native German and served as bishop and cardinal in Munich before becoming pope on Tuesday.

One German cardinal said the selection is "an important sign of the final return of Germany to the international community." And Germany's chancellor said the election "is a great honor for our country."

However, others aren't sharing that sentiment.

One theologian said the election was "an enormous disappointment for all those who hoped for a reformist and pastoral pope." And a left-leaning newspaper ran a black front page today with the headline "Oh, my God."

Pope Lays Out Vision For Church

Presiding at his first mass as pope Wednesday, Benedict delivered a broad message with some clues to what his tenure as pontiff would be like.

He said he would continue the reforms of the Second Vatican Council. He also said his first job will be to work to reunify all Christians.

The pope also expressed some humility, saying he feels inadequate to bear his new responsibility, but that he's also grateful to God.

And he laid out some plans for the immediate future, saying he intends to go to Cologne, Germany in August for the church's World Youth Day.

Pope Benedict XVI will be formally installed on Sunday.

The pontiff is a staunch defender of church doctrine.

The former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger warned on the eve of his election as pope that the modern world is trading a clear faith for "a dictatorship of relativism."

As the first German pope in almost 1,000 years, Benedict XVI will try to recall an increasingly secular Europe to its Christian roots, while purifying a church tainted by scandal.

On Good Friday, he denounced filth in the Church, including the priesthood.

During his tenure as the guardian of church doctrine, the Vatican has been uncompromising in its opposition to homosexuality, ordaining women or allowing priests to marry.

He warned last year that abortion and euthanasia are grave sins, and that Catholic politicians who support their legality are cooperating in evil and can be denied Communion.

As head of the Vatican's doctrinal watchdog agency, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger warned American Catholics against departing from church teaching on issues such as abortion when they vote. He also drew criticism from victims of clergy sex abuse for seeming to minimize the problem. And as a orthodox traditionalist, he has opposed married or women priests.

The majority of American Catholics told pollsters in recent weeks that they favor married clergy and a greater voice for the laity in the church.

Chester Gillis, theology chairman at Georgetown University said, "In America, he has many avid supporters, but many who are not so keen on the power he has wielded."

Some Jews Wary Because Of Nazi Youth Membership

The election of a pope who was once a member of the Hitler Youth raised a few eyebrows in Israel. That's partly because of revulsion for anything with even a hint of connection to Germany's Nazi years.

Some Jews in Israel are expressing concern over the choice of Ratzinger as pope because of his German origins and links to the Nazis of World War II.

But others said the new pontiff's record over the last six decades is more important than his youthful affiliations.

There was a barb wrapped in Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom's welcome to the new pope. He said in a statement that he's sure the new pope will take a strong stand against anti-semitism, considering his background.

In marking the naming of the new pope, Israel's government wrapped a positive statement around a barb about Ratzinger's membership in the Hitler Youth. He said he had no choice in the matter.

The statement said "Israel is hopeful that under this new papacy, we will continue to move forward in Vatican-Israel relations."

Ratzinger said membership in the Hitler Youth was compulsory when he joined in 1945.

Pope John Paul II was hailed as making great strides in repairing relations with the Jews.

German Cardinals Reveal What Happened In Conclave

Whatever happened to the sacred oath of secrecy?

Cardinals were sworn to silence about everything that happened during the conclave to choose a new pope. But some German cardinals -- delighted about the choice of their countryman, Joseph Ratzinger -- have spilled some of the secrets.

Cardinal Joachim Meisner of Cologne told reporters that the new Pope Benedict XVI was elected on the fourth ballot -- the first of the afternoon session. He added that Ratzinger got more than the required two-thirds support.

He said there was spontaneous applause as soon as the cardinals realized Ratzinger had won.

Meisner and three other German cardinals answered questions about the conclave despite their vow of silence, which Ratzinger led himself as dean of the College of Cardinals when the conclave began.