EXPERT ADVISORY: Resignation of Pope Benedict XVI

By Cassie Williams Jones

Andrew Chesnut, Ph.D., author and religious studies professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, said that there is a strong possibility that the next pope will be from Latin America, Africa or Italy.

Chesnut, the Bishop Walter Sullivan Chair in Catholic Studies and professor of religious studies in VCU’s School of World Studies, can discuss Pope Benedict's resignation and the future of the Roman Catholic Church. Chesnut is an internationally recognized expert on Catholic topics and is frequently interviewed by national and international media on Latin American religious history.

“There is a good chance the Pope’s successor will be from Latin America, Africa or Italy,” said Chesnut. “There is a compelling argument for a Latin American or African pope, with two-thirds of the world's Catholics in the global south, and almost half in Latin America - that would be a smart choice for the future of the church. However, Italians have missed the papacy with the last two popes being non-Italians, so some could fight for an Italian candidate.”

Citing advanced age and ill health, Pope Benedict will resign from his post of almost eight years as the leader of the Roman Catholic Church on Feb. 28. The 85-year-old is the first pope in six centuries to step down.

Chesnut has written three books: “Born Again in Brazil: The Pentecostal Boom and Pathogens of Poverty,” which traced the rapid rise of Pentecostalism in Brazil following the disestablishment of the Catholic Church; “Competitive Spirits: Latin America’s New Religious Economy,” which examined the religious groups that have prospered most in the region’s pluralist landscape; and “Devoted to Death: ‘Santa Muerte,’ The Skeleton Saint,” which analyzed the rising popularity of this folk saint in both Mexico and the United States.

Chesnut received his Ph.D. in Latin American History from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1995. In 1997, he joined the history department of the University of Houston, where he remained until coming to VCU. In 2008, he was selected as the inaugural recipient of the Bishop Walter Sullivan Chair in Catholic Studies in VCU’s School of World Studies in the College of Humanities and Sciences.