Pope Benedict Roundup

• Amid JPII Institute controversy, Benedict XVI meets with recently dismissed professor Catholic News Agency 08/05/19:

  Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI met last week with a recently dismissed professor of moral theology at Rome’s Pontifical John Paul II Institute, amid ongoing controversy regarding recent changes to the Institute.

  Benedict XVI invited Monsignor Livio Melina to meet with him in on August 1, a source close to Melina told CNA.

  The pope emeritus “wanted to receive Prof. Mons. Livio Melina at a private audience. After a long discussion of the recent events at the Pontifical Institute John Paul II, he granted his blessing, expressing his personal solidarity and assuring him of his closeness in prayer.”

  Melina, who was president of the John Paul II Institute from 2006 until 2016, was dismissed from the institute after the recent promulgation of new statutes, or rules of order, for the graduate school, and a decision to eliminate the chair of moral theology which Melina held.

• Benedict XVI takes short trip outside Vatican, visits towns outside Rome, by Claire Giangravè. Crux 07/27/19:

  ... While it was heartening for people to see Benedict, 92, outside the Vatican walls, the wheelchair that followed him around wherever he went served as a constant remainder of the emeritus pope’s advanced age.

  Archbishop Georg Ganswein, longtime secretary to the retired pontiff, made sure that Benedict was always well hydrated during his evening escapade.

  The pope’s last stop was in Frascati, yet another small town in the Castelli Romani area, where he was welcomed by the local bishop, Raffaello Martinelli, for a private meeting and light supper.

• "Pope em. Benedict XVI is Surberg's first honorary citizen" Traunsteiner Tagblatt 07/05/19:

  Benedict recently received a delegation from the village on Surberg, near Traunstein, when he was made an honorary citizen. Benedict spent his formative years in the hamlet of Hufschlag, near Trainstein. He regarded it as his hometown.

  The Mayor, Mayor Josef Wimmer, presented him with the honorary citizenship certificate at Mater Ecclesiae. Benedict spent half an hour chatting with him and a small group in his sitting room.

• Pope Benedict XVI speaks in new interview: ‘There is one pope, he is Francis’, by Gerard O’Connell. America 06/28/19:

  “The adversaries of Bergoglio, often conservatives desperately seeking a word of Benedict that would sound as a criticism of Bergoglio, have unfailingly heard [from Benedict] that ‘There is one pope, he is Francis.’”

  That sentence contains one of only a small number of quotations from the 92-year-old Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI found in a long article in the weekly magazine Corriere della Sera, Italy’s best-selling daily, published on June 28.

  The other significant quotation from Benedict regards church unity, in which he says: “The unity of the church is always in danger, for centuries. It has been throughout its entire history. Wars, internal conflicts, centrifugal pushes, threats of schism. But in the end, the consciousness that the church is and must remain united has always prevailed.

• “The Pope” brings drama of Benedict and Francis to stage, by Charles Collins. Crux 06/14/19. Anton Lesser as Pope Benedict XVI and Nicholas Woodeson as Cardinal Bergoglio in "The Pope", at the Royal & Derngate Theatre in Northampton, England.

• Benedict XVI turns 92, by Cindy Wooden. Catholic Herald 04/16/19.

• How Joseph Ratzinger saw past the Church’s established structures, by Fr. Raymond Souza. 12/13/18.

• Pope urges continued studies of the writings of Pope Benedict XVI 11/17/18:

  Pope Francis this morning met with members of the Joseph Ratzinger-Benedict XVI Vatican Foundation on the occasion of the eighth Ratzinger Prize.

  In his address, he highlighted the need to continue to study the writings of Pope Benedict XVI and appreciate the contributions of women in theology and “Christianly inspired arts”.

  The winners of this year’s prize are: German Catholic theologian Marianne Schlosser, a medieval specialist of Saint Bonaventure and professor of the theology of spirituality in the Faculty of Catholic Theology at the University of Vienna since 2004; and Swiss architect Mario Botta who built many sacred buildings and various churches.

  Addressing an "affectionate and grateful thought to Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI", Francis said that "his is a spirit that views the problems of our time with awareness and courage, and knows how to draw, from attention to Scripture in the living tradition of the Church, the wisdom necessary for a constructive dialogue with today’s culture."

  As for the Ratzinger Prize going to a woman, the pontiff noted that "it is very important that the contribution of women to the scientific field of theological research and that of the teaching of theology — for so long considered almost exclusive territories of the clergy — be recognized more and more.

Upcoming Books

The Theology of Benedict XVI: A Protestant Appreciation There's no doubt about Benedict XVI's theological legacy. He's been at the center of every major theological controversy in the Catholic Church over the last fifty years. But he remains a polarizing figure, misunderstood by supporters and opponents alike. A deeper understanding of Benedict's theology reveals a man dedicated to the life and faith of the church. In this collection of essays, prominent Protestant theologians examine and commend the work of the Pope Emeritus. Katherine Sonderegger, Kevin Vanhoozer, and Carl Trueman―among others―present a full picture of Benedict's theology, particularly his understanding of the relationship between faith and reason and his pursuit of truth for the church. The global Christian faith can learn from Benedict's insight into the modern church and his desire to safeguard the future of the church by leaning on the wisdom of the ancient church.