Papal decadence...

Isn't the pope setting a bad example by the way he looks to the outside world? He lives in a mansion, gets waited on by servants, people kneel before him and kiss his ring, he wears custom clothes. Shouldn't he be reflecting the behavior of Jesus? Answer by David Gregson on 9/25/2007: Jesus dressed well enough. His clothes were worth gambling for at His crucifixion. His other needs were met by His followers, in particular the women from Galilee (Mk 15:41). It’s true that He had nowhere to lay His head, not because He no longer had a home in Nazareth, but because His mission required that He travel constantly, proclaiming the coming of the Kingdom. He became poor that we might be rich (2 Cor 8:9), in the sense that He divested Himself of His divine glory, so that we might share in it when He took it up again. It doesn't make sense to suggest that the Pope, instead of accepting honor from his people, should be more like Jesus. Jesus accepted divine honors. His disciples worshiped Him. He praised the woman who kissed His feet (Lk 7:38), and He required such absolute obedience as no Pope would ever ask for. We can compare the Pope to the High Priest of ancient Israel, whose official garments were adorned with gold and gems "for glory and for beauty" (Ex 28), not to exalt the man himself, but to exalt his office. The papal panoply expresses the glory of his office as the Vicar of Christ on earth. Nothing of his adornment, much less the palace where he lives, belongs to him personally. In fact, if we speculate, the present Holy Father would be content to live in a small house with just his books and perhaps a cat. The panoply of his office is a part of the burden he bears, "for glory and for beauty," to the honor of God.