Cardinal Ratzinger Fan Club

I was hoping that someone would post the happines with which the German Jews have greeted the news. Thanks.

 

Hi again, Angela, I think I originally read this post with too much sensitivity. It was just a joke, and I think I overreacted. I would like to publicly apologize for it and for any other inconvenience. I honestly thought your comments were offensive to Catholic people. They are not. Again, apologies.

 

Exactly. And like his predecessor, JP2, BXVI want Jews around so that we can eventually embrace Christianity.

Sorry folks, but to MY way of thinking, anyway, that is exactly the kind of reasoning that the Church used to justify the ghetto.

 

I've been thinking about the possible symbolism of Cardinal Ratzinger's choice of the Papal name 'Benedict'.

The inspiration might not have been a Pope at all, but rather St. Benedict, the 6'th century author of the Benedictine Rule and inspiration of the Benedictine monastic order.

The Benedictines reached their maximum influence during the 'Dark Ages', between 500 and 1000 AD, when their monasteries were often among the last few flickering lights of civilization in entire regions of western Europe.

The parallel is that Ratzinger apparently sees contemporary Europe (and presumably the entire West) as slipping into a morass of secularism, liberalism and skepticism. He said as much when he spoke just prior to the conclave that elected him.

The Catholic church has the option of being broad but shallow, trying to be as popular as possible in the changed circumstances, at the cost of compromising its traditional teaching.

Or the church can stand aloof from cultural fashion, narrow but deep, protected from social change by the walls of its cloister, even at the cost of continued shrinkage in numbers and increasing cultural alienation.

Perhaps Ratzinger sees himself as today's Benedict in some sense, writing a new Rule for the church to guide it through this troubled age, arguably dark in a new and very different way.

So a Benedict XIV papacy might end up guiding the church towards becoming smaller, but more disciplined, committed and inevitably more sectarian.

 

As a former Catholic, I think he is a very poor choice. An obvious short-timer at the age of 78.

 

Yes. Remember when they kill the witches, the crazy people and the dissidents; and all of that: in the name God.

In addition, they like to cut hands, foot, and body parts, again, in the name of God.

Now, these days, that kind of conduct, is not tolerate; but, they still love to be kissed in the hands and in the foots.

That is incredible, kiss the stinky hand or foot of an old stinky man!

Also, be careful with the kids, they love the kids.

 

The Rule of Saint Benedict is an interesting little volume and will repay a careful, unbiased reading.

St. Benedict makes two points that the new Pope would do well to remember (but will undoubtedly forget):

-Priests in the monastery are to receive no special priviledges or consideration or authority except as is directly connected with and necessetated by,their sacerdotal functions. The very idea of priests being in authority simply because they ARE priests is repellent to Benedict.

-A monastery is established for the gentle guidance and assistance of WEAK souls seeking salvation. It is emphatically NOT a community of superior moral beings entitled to "lord it over" the rest of humanity.

The Pope will doubtless also profit from remembering that Benedict's own monks tried to poison him. The legend is, though, that the wineglass shattered as he raised it to his lips, spilling the poisoned wine before Benedict could swallow it. To this day, Benedict is usually depicted with a Book (his Rule) and a cracked wine goblet.

(This last is, obviously, not from the Rule for Monasteries)

Benedict had a sister, Scholastica, who did for women's monasteries what Benedict did for male establishments. Makes you kinda wonder exactly what their childhood was LIKE!