February 12, 2013Dear Sir,Pope Benedict XVI resignation was more than a shocking break from 600 years of tradition it was revolutionary and a step that was in tune with a new era of pragmatism. In the early 1500s it was Martin Luther who, perhaps more dramatically, instigated another revolution which essentially said, that its man’s faith in God and not the church which brought salvation.Pope Benedict by example has turned his papacy into a human phenomenon rather than a mole of tradition. Without declaring it, his actions are boldly saying I am human, as your spiritual leader I play a role, I make input through my human faculties and as I sense that I can no longer play that role, tradition has no value in keeping me in this position, in fact there is more value in having the role I’ve played properly filled.We live in a time when any and all religious tradition has to be weighed against current human and ecological needs. In the grand scale religious tradition is meant to play a role. It doesn’t matter whether it is Christian tradition, Islamic tradition, Jewish, Buddhist or non religious, they all in their inception had a purpose in making a human to be compassionate toward all life and to emit peace. The toggle comes when like in the days of Martin Luther, the tradition or the religion becomes regarded as the idol, when truthfully it’s our simple humanity and whether it is in touch with the essence of life that is the real crucible of faith.We are all instruments of the ultimate source of life call it God, Allah, Yahweh or any name that attempts to describe the unfathomable or choose not to describe it. The self evident reality is that it’s through the medium of our human talents our universe moves forward. For that reason freedom is important and that all men have an inalienable right to be free and must have the liberty to develop and pursue their talents and expression. Breaking the veil of religious hierarchy and the many Vatican constructs in our minds will become more common in this new era of pragmatism.Piety in this new era will be indistinguishable between the person who spends all his/her time studying to find a cure for a terminal disease or to end gang violence from the one who stays up at night and prays.The light of the universe shines through every being and is not restricted to the religious nor what we deem as the seekers. Just a crack of compassion within a human is filled with rays of love and healing energy. When even the presumed pious sit in a lonely spot and honestly examine themselves they will meet both the animal and the saint within. We have to be thankful that from out of a piece of lowly dirt a tremendous deed can arise. The best among us will always be those who fight against evil and struggle to attain truth with consistency with reason and patience.We now live in a global village where we must become, if human, our brothers keeper. Survival of the fittest is not the axiom for our current world. The new global religion says we are all one people, living in one world and there is no hierarchy other than the love that flows through us.Pope Benedict XVI has relinquished a 600 year tradition because of simple human feelings which he needed to have honoured. I can only hope the next pope understands the meaning of his resignation whether intended as a message or just happenstance. This world needs real leaders in the world to be on the ground and not just as symbols, traditions and lofty statues out of reach and positioned high over our heads.I think Pope Benedict action underscores the reality that even it were a Christ they would have no value in this world as an example if they were other than human. What good would there be to have a perfect example, if in reality the example cannot be attained? The power is not in following the example it’s in the faith in and exposure to the creator.Thank you Pope Benedict for honouring our humanity.KHALID A WASI