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   German cardinal elected new pope

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Topic: German cardinal elected new pope (Read 705 times)

Insane 4 Survivor
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German cardinal elected new pope
« on: Apr 19^th, 2005, 12:07pm »

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German cardinal elected new pope
Joseph Ratzinger will be Pope Benedict XVI
Tuesday, April 19, 2005 Posted: 1:02 PM EDT (1702 GMT

VATICAN CITY (CNN) -- Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger of Germany has been selected by the Roman Catholic church as the new pope.

Cardinal Jorge Arturo Medina Estevez of Chile made the announcement to a cheering crowd in St. Peter's Square.

Ratzinger, who took the name Benedict XVI, appeared on the balcony of the Vatican Basilica to greet the people and deliver his first papal blessing.

"Dear brothers and sisters, after the great Pope John Paul II, the cardinals have elected me -- a simple, humble worker in the vineyard of the Lord," The Associated Press quoted him as saying.

Once the archbishop of Munich, Germany, and for many years prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, Ratzinger, 78, was one of the most powerful men in the Vatican and is widely acknowledged as a leading theologian.

Ratzinger served for 20 years as John Paul II's chief theological adviser.

As a young priest he was on the progressive side of theological debates but shifted to the right after the student revolutions of 1968.

In the Vatican, he has been the driving force behind crackdowns on liberation theology, religious pluralism, challenges to traditional moral teachings on issues such as homosexuality, and dissent on such issues as women's ordination.

The dean of the College of Cardinals since November 2002, he was elevated to cardinal by Pope Paul VI in June 1977.

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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #1 on: Apr 19^th, 2005, 1:07pm »

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Hmm...

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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #2 on: Apr 19^th, 2005, 2:20pm »

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Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger
He is Pope John Paul IIs sidekick, his confidante and his enforcer. But when the fading Polish prelate meets his maker in the not-too-distant future, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger may also be next in line to become the worlds top Roman Catholic, the corporal representative of Gods word on Earth. And that should give us all pause, Catholics and non-Catholics alike.

Currently the suave, white-haired German Cardinal runs the Churchs Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. This august organization is occasionally referred to as the Holy Office but it is perhaps best known by an older name the Inquisition. You history buffs will remember the Inquisition: those Catholic zealots who in the Middle Ages couldnt abide apostates and doubters of the One True Faith. They perfected the use of thumbscrews and the rack to force Jews, Muslims and other dissenters to adopt the Vaticans more accurate understanding of Christianity.

Though he may be next in line for St Peters throne, Joe Ratzinger is no spring chicken. He was born in Bavaria in 1927 so is only six years younger than John Paul II. However, he shows few signs of slowing down. He has been the Vaticans top doctrinal officer since 1981 and is a recondite intellectual, fluent in four languages. His intellectual searching began as a seminarian in Nazi Germany where he rounded out the experience with a brief fling in the Hitler Youth, though he was never a member of the Nazi Party. He was later conscripted into the German Army from which he eventually deserted before ending the war as an American POW.

After completing his doctorate on St Augustine in 1953 he made the rounds as a professor of systematic theology before ascending to the position of Archbishop of Munich in 1977. From there John Paul II invited him to Rome, where he took up residence in 1981.

Once settled he was quick to make a mark with his old-fashioned dogmatism and conservative values. He was particularly upset by what he saw as destructive, liberalizing influences unleashed at the Second Vatican Council (1962-65). These wild excesses extended to the introduction of a non-Latin Mass after Vatican II which Ratzinger characterized as a tragic breach in tradition. But the Cardinals discomfort with modern life and yearning for the good old days also extended to the social realm, especially into the areas of gay rights and women.

In 1986 Ratzinger issued a letter to the Catholic Bishops in which he wrote that homosexuality was a tendency towards an intrinsic moral evil. A few years later, in 1992, he rejected the notion of human rights for gays, stressing that their civil liberties could be legitimately limited. He followed up by remarking that neither the church nor society should be surprised if irrational and violent reactions increase when gays demand civil rights. Not a man to mince his words, Ratzinger urgently set to work to ferret out gay-sensitive clergy.

The good Cardinal also extended the Papal principle of infallibility by declaring that the ordination of women was impossible because John Paul II said it was so. Ditto for the use of the word priest by the Anglican Church: not on, said Joe, because Leo XIII in 1896 said it wasnt allowed.

The Cardinal is also not happy mixing religion and politics at least not the kind of politics which suggests the Church has an obligation to assist the poor in their fight for justice. So he set out to muzzle outspoken liberation theologians including Brazils charismatic Leonardo Boff. He also replaced the now-deceased Archbishop of Recife, Dom Helder Camara, with Monsignor José Cardosa a conservative right-winger and warned the ex-Bishop of Chiapas in Mexico, Samuel Ruiz, to preach the Gospel in its integrity without Marxist interpretations.

As if that werent enough, the ever-busy Cardinal has used his privileged take on the Truth to set back inter-faith tolerance and religious pluralism a few decades. In 1997 Ratzinger annoyed Buddhists by calling their religion an autoerotic spirituality that offers transcendence without imposing concrete religious obligations. And Hinduism, he said, offers false hope; it guarantees purification based on a morally cruel concept of reincarnation resembling a continuous circle of hell. The Cardinal predicted Buddhism would replace Marxism as the Catholic Churchs main enemy this century.

So keep your eyes on those chimney pots when the contest for the next Pope begins. If Joe Ratzinger gets the nod progressive voices inside the Catholic Church will have an even harder time being heard. And it could happen. As Ratzinger himself has said: No-one expected the present Pope to be elected either.

Sources:
Cardinal Ratzinger Fan Club, http://members.xoom.com/_XMCM/ratzinger/ ;
National Catholic Reporter, April 19, 1999;
The Statesman, April 26, 1977;
OutRage London www.outrage.cygnet.co.uk/catholic.htm

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JP
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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #3 on: Apr 19^th, 2005, 2:35pm »

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Ok, Pope Benedict XVI (the sixteenth, right?), I think, will be an unpopular pope. But it doesn't say how he is with the youth (where JPII is popular). Also, he's only a few years younger than JPII so we might see a new pope again in the near future. Shocked

« Last Edit: Apr 19^th, 2005, 2:35pm by JP »

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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #4 on: Apr 19^th, 2005, 4:39pm »

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The reason they elected him is because he is conservative, old, and will carry out the dictates of John Paul. He is the cardinal that kept the liberal bishops and priests from being able to question the decisions made by the conservatives.
He will make sure that the church stays as it is until it can find a younger cardinal who will keep the status quo, and not allow too many changes in the coming decades, when Benedict dies.
Sad , but such is the politics of the church now.
Keep the women out. No marriage for the priests( a woman could sway his decisions). No help for the million of divorced Catholics. etc. etc. etc.
Sorry if I sound bitter.

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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #5 on: Apr 19^th, 2005, 5:11pm »

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Being the non-secular person that I am, I'd love to hear more of what the Catholics on the board think. Thanks for you input mum!

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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #6 on: Apr 19^th, 2005, 5:14pm »

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I'm not Catholic, but I'm disapointed in their choice.

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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #7 on: Apr 19^th, 2005, 5:25pm »

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I respected Pope John Paul II. I was really hoping that "The Church" would take this opportunity to change the status quo and move forward. Yet they can't seem to grasp the fact that change isn't always a bad thing. Progress can be good for all.

I am also disappointed that no one seemed to take into account how negatively the choice of such a controversial man (his youth in Germany) would impact the chuch and the perception that world leaders have of it.

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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #8 on: Apr 19^th, 2005, 6:44pm »

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It feels like they took a step backward...

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shamon
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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #9 on: Apr 19^th, 2005, 6:55pm »

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but.....
this guy reflected the approval of JP2. They shared the same views, he's old so he won't have a long term.... it was an easy decision....

Get women off their backs and into the pulpit..... WHO'S WITH ME!!!!!! Huh

??!!!!!

if so, why?
if not, why?

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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #10 on: Apr 19^th, 2005, 7:08pm »

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I'm non-catholic. The oldest man to elect a pope since Clement XII in 1730.

« Last Edit: Apr 20^th, 2005, 8:06pm by amazingracelover »

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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #11 on: Apr 19^th, 2005, 8:10pm »

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I agree with the choice as a catholic, only because its temporary, with such a high stress job, he won't last too long, and there can be a younger cardinal groomed, as Mum said, in the meantime, status quo is upheld.

As for his youth in germany, he was drafted to serve his country, not like he had a lot of choice,

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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #12 on: Apr 20^th, 2005, 2:16am »

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I'm Catholic... I haven't really absorb Ratzinger's background... but then I'm glad that a new pope has been finally elected.... I wouldn't judge him now.... coz it's too early to say.....

I'd say that I want how the Catholic Church is today as is... I don't want the church to allow women to be priests.. sorry I'm not being sexist... but it's just I prefer priests as men.... and nuns as women...

I hope that he could continue JPII's principles... keeping women out of clergy life, not allowing priests to marry.... he may be not become as popular as JPII but time will only judge how he'll be recognized by the world... as long as he would be able to take good care of the Catholic Church.... Grin

long live Pope Benedict XVI Cool

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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #13 on: Apr 20^th, 2005, 4:33pm »

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Non Catholic here.. I heard he is more of a "transitional Pope", due to his age and such..

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Re: German cardinal elected new pope
« Reply #14 on: Apr 30^th, 2005, 8:37pm »

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I expected nothing else. I am disheartened by the decision. The Catholc churches are closing left and right. Giving Catholics more of the same is not going to save the church.

I was raised in a large Catholic family.

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