Saturday, September 16, 2006

Pope Benedict XVI on "Faith, Reason and the University" - Regensburg, 2006

In 1969, following a tense period at the University of Tübingen (see The difficult years, by Gianni Valente 30 Giorni May 2006), Joseph Ratzinger received the invitation to teach at the University of Regensburg in Bavaria.

Having turned down the initial invitation in 1967, he remarks in Milestones that "I was still dean [of the faculty of theology at Tübingen], but the exhausting controveries I experienced during academic meetings had changed my attitude". So it was with understandable relief that he accepted the invitation. Ratzinger would later reflect on his years as "a time of fruitful theological work" and of "acquiring a theological vision that was ever more clearly my own" (Milestones p. 149/150).

The website of the University of Regensburg proudly features a section devoted to Pope Benedict's years at Regensburg, where he was appointed in 1969 as a professor of dogmatic theology. For B16 history buffs, the website posts a number of wonderful artifacts, including a newspaper announcement and certificate of his appointment, along with his later appointment to the International Papal Theological Commission.

On September 12, 2006, Pope Benedict XVI was again welcomed to the university, to give an address to students and faculty. His lecture was titled "Faith, Reason and the University: Memories and Reflections", the text of which is available at the Vatican website.* While I'll highlight a few points, I recommend a reading of the full text -- it is "vintage Benedict": at once stimulating and provocative.

The Pope spoke about his days teaching at the University of Bonn, of the dialogue between departments, "working in everything on the basis of a single rationality with its various aspects and sharing responsibility for the right use of reason." By way of illustration he mentions an exchange "by the erudite Byzantine emperor Manuel II Paleologus and an educated Persian on the subject of Christianity and Islam, and the truth of both, and proceeds to mention one point, "itself rather marginal to the dialogue as a whole," as a starting point for his reflections on the relationship between faith and reason:

In the seventh conversation edited by Professor Khoury, the emperor touches on the theme of the holy war. The emperor must have known that surah 2, 256 reads: "There is no compulsion in religion". According to the experts, this is one of the suras of the early period, when Mohammed was still powerless and under threat. But naturally the emperor also knew the instructions, developed later and recorded in the Qur'an, concerning holy war. Without descending to details, such as the difference in treatment accorded to those who have the "Book" and the "infidels", he addresses his interlocutor with a startling brusqueness on the central question about the relationship between religion and violence in general, saying: "Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached". The emperor, after having expressed himself so forcefully, goes on to explain in detail the reasons why spreading the faith through violence is something unreasonable. Violence is incompatible with the nature of God and the nature of the soul. "God", he says, "is not pleased by blood - and not acting reasonably is contrary to God's nature. Faith is born of the soul, not the body. Whoever would lead someone to faith needs the ability to speak well and to reason properly, without violence and threats... To convince a reasonable soul, one does not need a strong arm, or weapons of any kind, or any other means of threatening a person with death...".

The decisive statement in this argument against violent conversion is this: not to act in accordance with reason is contrary to God's nature. The editor, Theodore Khoury, observes: For the emperor, as a Byzantine shaped by Greek philosophy, this statement is self-evident. But for Muslim teaching, God is absolutely transcendent. His will is not bound up with any of our categories, even that of rationality. Here Khoury quotes a work of the noted French Islamist R. Arnaldez, who points out that Ibn Hazn went so far as to state that God is not bound even by his own word, and that nothing would oblige him to reveal the truth to us. Were it God's will, we would even have to practise idolatry.

At this point, as far as understanding of God and thus the concrete practice of religion is concerned, we are faced with an unavoidable dilemma. Is the conviction that acting unreasonably contradicts God's nature merely a Greek idea, or is it always and intrinsically true?

In answer to this question, Benedict contends that there exists "the profound harmony between what is Greek in the best sense of the word and the biblical understanding of faith in God," pointing to the Christian understanding that "God acts with logos. Logos means both reason and word - a reason which is creative and capable of self-communication, precisely as reason."


Benedict goes on to discuss the significance of the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament -- the Septuagint -- which fosters this encounter between biblical faith and Greek philosophical inquiry ("From the very heart of Christian faith and, at the same time, the heart of Greek thought now joined to faith, Manuel II was able to say: Not to act 'with logos' is contrary to God's nature.")

According to Benedict, this integration of faith and reason is at the heart of the Christian conception of God. He notes that there arose in the history of Christianity itself schools of thought which have endangered this very conception, and which, when taken to their logical conclusion, are found to be profoundly incompatible. I personally found the following passage one of the more provocative and stimulating:

In all honesty, one must observe that in the late Middle Ages we find trends in theology which would sunder this synthesis between the Greek spirit and the Christian spirit. In contrast with the so-called intellectualism of Augustine and Thomas, there arose with Duns Scotus a voluntarism which ultimately led to the claim that we can only know God's voluntas ordinata. Beyond this is the realm of God's freedom, in virtue of which he could have done the opposite of everything he has actually done. This gives rise to positions which clearly approach those of Ibn Hazn and might even lead to the image of a capricious God, who is not even bound to truth and goodness. God's transcendence and otherness are so exalted that our reason, our sense of the true and good, are no longer an authentic mirror of God, whose deepest possibilities remain eternally unattainable and hidden behind his actual decisions. As opposed to this, the faith of the Church has always insisted that between God and us, between his eternal Creator Spirit and our created reason there exists a real analogy, in which unlikeness remains infinitely greater than likeness, yet not to the point of abolishing analogy and its language (cf. Lateran IV). God does not become more divine when we push him away from us in a sheer, impenetrable voluntarism; rather, the truly divine God is the God who has revealed himself as logos and, as logos, has acted and continues to act lovingly on our behalf. Certainly, love transcends knowledge and is thereby capable of perceiving more than thought alone (cf. Eph 3:19); nonetheless it continues to be love of the God who is logos. Consequently, Christian worship is λογικὴ λατρεία - worship in harmony with the eternal Word and with our reason (cf. Rom 12:1).

According to Benedict, this "inner rapprochement between Biblical faith and Greek philosophical inquiry" is not only at the very heart of Christianity, but in the historical origins of Europe as well: "this convergence, with the subsequent addition of the Roman heritage, created Europe and remains the foundation of what can rightly be called Europe."

In the latter half of his lecture, Benedict voices his concerns with the call for the "dehellenization" of Christianity -- of severing Christianity from its Greek heritage. He observes three stages of this program of dehellenization:

  1. the fundamental postulates of the Reformation in the sixteenth century, countering what they perfecived to be a philosophically-conditioned and corrupted Christianity with a wholesale reliance upon sola scriptura -- "faith in its pure, primordial form, as originally found in the biblical Word";

  2. the "liberal theology of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries", with Adolf von Harnack as its outstanding representative. -- Harnack positing a "return simply to the man Jesus and to his simple message underneath the accretions of theology," thereby bringing Christianity back into harmony with modern reason through the purging of its theological elements (the divinity of Christ and the Trinity). This is in accord with what Benedict describes as the "modern self-limitation of reason," which confines itself to that which is scientifically (mathematically and emperically) verifiable -- thereby dismissing as irrelevant (subjective) "the specifically human questions about our origin and destiny, the questions raised by religion and ethics."

  3. the proposition of "inculturation" -- that, in light of experience with cultural pluralism, "the synthesis with Hellenism achieved in the early Church was a preliminary inculturation which ought not to be binding on other cultures . . . [who] have the right to return to the simple message of the New Testament prior to that inculturation, in order to inculturate it anew in their own particular milieux." To this Benedict responds:
    The New Testament was written in Greek and bears the imprint of the Greek spirit, which had already come to maturity as the Old Testament developed. True, there are elements in the evolution of the early Church which do not have to be integrated into all cultures. Nonetheless, the fundamental decisions made about the relationship between faith and the use of human reason are part of the faith itself; they are developments consonant with the nature of faith itself.
Against this program of dehellenization, Benedict does not propose a rollback of the Enlightenment. He acknowledges "the positive aspects of modernity", pointing out that the scientific ethos is itself "the will to be obedient to the truth, and, as such, embodies an attitude which reflects one of the basic tenets of Christianity").


Rather, what is called for is a "broadening of our concept of reason and its applications," overcoming "the self-imposed limitation of reason" to that which is emperically verifiable, and a true restoration of theology to its place in the university, in genuine dialogue with the sciences -- "not merely as a historical discipline and one of the human sciences, but precisely as theology, as inquiry into the rationality of faith." Only then, says Benedict, "do we become capable of that genuine dialogue of cultures and religions so urgently needed today."

In the Western world it is widely held that only positivistic reason and the forms of philosophy based on it are universally valid. Yet the world’s profoundly religious cultures see this exclusion of the divine from the universality of reason as an attack on their most profound convictions. A reason which is deaf to the divine and which relegates religion into the realm of subcultures is incapable of entering into the dialogue of cultures. . . .

The West has long been endangered by this aversion to the questions which underlie its rationality, and can only suffer great harm thereby. The courage to engage the whole breadth of reason, and not the denial of its grandeur – this is the programme with which a theology grounded in Biblical faith enters into the debates of our time. “Not to act reasonably (with logos) is contrary to the nature of God”, said Manuel II, according to his Christian understanding of God, in response to his Persian interlocutor. It is to this great logos, to this breadth of reason, that we invite our partners in the dialogue of cultures. To rediscover it constantly is the great task of the university.

The subject of this lecture is certainly a familiar one to Benedict. Shortly after his election, Zenit News featured an interview with Timothy O'Donnell, president of Christendom College, who spoke on Benedict XVI's Commitment to Faith and Reason in Universities. O'Donnell predicted that the Holy Father's experience as a university professor would have an influence over his pontificate, and that he would carry on Pope John Paul II's legacy "by stressing the synthesis of faith and reason in the Catholic intellectual tradition."
. . . I think that our current Holy Father will continue the good work initiated by Pope John Paul II in his apostolic constitutions "Sapienta Christiana" and "Ex Corde Ecclesiae."

I think he will find it particularly important to continue to speak to the vital role that must be played by Catholic institutions of higher learning in an effort to once again re-engage the culture and communicate effectively to the world the great synthesis of the Catholic intellectual tradition, which unites both faith and reason and recognizes in both of them a common source in Almighty God.

Responses to the 2006 Regensburg Address
  • Mark Scott (Rome of the West) ignores the tangential sound-byte approach of the media and gets to the heart of the address in his post, Holy Father's Speech on De-Hellenization of Religion:
    This is the critical question: "Is acting according to reason also acting according to the Will of God?"
  • Prof. Stephen Bainbridge comes to the point:
    Pope Benedict XVI's speech at the University of Regensburg is a challenging read - it's dense and, in a way, highly technical. Yet, it rewards close scrutiny. . . .

    [T]he Pope is staking out a set of claims about the relationship of man and God that stand in opposition not only to the Islam of Ibn Hazn, but also that of the Protestant Reformers, the Jesus of History crowd, and (an area of particular concern for this pope) post-Christian Europe. The Pope is also renewing the claims of the Church Universal to have a truth that is transcendent, rather than culturally-bound.

  • Oswald Sobrino (Catholic Analysis) has also been taking a look at the speech in its entirety -- part 1 examines the Pope's opening remarks on the use of coercion to spread religion; part two tackles Benedict's critique of the loss of reason in the West:
    . . . the major part of the speech is not about Islam at all but about a wider trend: the abandonment of reason in the modern world. Fanatical religious violence is but one manifestation of that trend. To judge by the number of paragraphs in his speech, what concerns the Pope more is the abandonment of the fullness of reason in the West. The Pope begins his discussion in the fifth paragraph by posing the question: "Is the conviction that acting unreasonably contradicts God's nature merely a Greek idea, or is it always intrinsically true?" For the Pope, the idea that acting unreasonably contradicts God's nature is an intrinsically true idea that is a perennial contribution of ancient Greek culture for all the world, whether Western or not.
    Thanks in large part to the irresponsibility of the media, the Vatican is preoccupied in a public relations venture to safeguard the lives of Christians. But this -- the loss of reason in the West; the integration of biblical faith and philosophical reason at the heart of Christianity, at (according to B16) the very foundation of Europe itself, the question of "dehellenization" -- is what we should be talking about, and I hope what many will be returning to this topic, once the fires of controversy have subsided. (Update 9/18/06) - Here is Part III on Oswald Sobrino's reflection on the Pope's address.

  • The Regensburg Lecture: Thinking Rightly About God and Man, by Fr. James V. Schall. Ignatius Insight September 15, 2006:
    . . . with this lecture we are in heady academic surroundings. All is genteel. All is formal. All is, yes, "intellectual." But it is here where the real battles lie hidden. What we see in Regensburg are, after Deus Caritas Est, the second shots of the new pope at the heart of what is wrong in our world and its mind. These "shots," however, are designed to do what all good intellectual battle does, namely, to make it possible for us to see again what is true and to live it.

    The Regensburg Address, I suspect, will go down as one of those seminal and incisive analyses that tell us who we are and where we are. It will remind us of what we are by teaching us again to think about the God that the skeptics, the dons, the theological faculties, including Muslim faculties, have too often obscured for us. Civilization depends also on thinking rightly about God and man -- all civilization, not just European or Muslim. Such is the reach of this lecture.

Update! 9-23-06

* In reading Benedict's speech I was relying on, and quoting from, the Provisional Text of the Regensberg address, on the website of Vatican Radio. In comparing it to that which is posted on the Vatican website, I see there are some minor variations in translation but I trust the meaning is essentially the same.
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The Controversy over Pope Benedict's Remarks on Islam

On the tangential matter that seems to be occupying everybody's attention, veteran Catholic reporter John Allen Jr. weighs in on Benedict' "jihad remark":
I have written before that Benedict XVI is not a PC pope. By that, I don't mean that he sets out to give offense; on the contrary, he's one of the most gracious figures ever to step on the world stage. Instead, he simply does not allow his thinking to be channeled by the taboos and fashions of ordinary public discourse.

For example, any PR consultant would have told the pope that if he wanted to make a point about the relationship between faith and reason, he shouldn't open up with a comparison between Islam and Christianity that would be widely understood as a criticism of Islam, suggesting that it's irrational and prone to violence. Yet that is precisely what Benedict did in his address to 1,500 students and faculty at the University of Regensburg on Wednesday, citing a 14th century dialogue between the Byzantine emperor Manuel II Paleologus and a learned Persian. . . .

It comes as no suprise that Benedict's remarks and citation of the quote has been met with furious and violent reaction -- first by Muslim protestors (proclaiming themselves at once the "religion of peace" and managing to fulfill all descriptions to the contrary) and the media, who are playing up the controversy for all that it's worth:
  • American Papist has a Roundup of the Islamofascist rage against Pope Benedict's comments (Sept. 15, 2006).

  • Milking the controversy, the pompous New York Times demands an apology. Amy Welborn ("More Pontificating") and Rod Dreher both respond ("The despicable New York Times" September 16, 2006).

  • Muslim Leaders Assail Pope’s Speech on Islam, by Ian Fisher. New York Times September 14, 2006 -- on the Islamic reaction, including those from Ali Bardakoglu of the Turkish government's directorate of religious affairs ("I do not think any good will come from the visit to the Muslim world of a person who has such ideas about Islam’s prophet. [Benedict] should first of all replace the grudge in his heart with moral values and respect for the other.") and a demand for "all Arab and Islamic states to recall their ambassadors from the Vatican and expel those from the Vatican until the pope says he is sorry" by Haken al-Mutairi of Kuwait's Islamic Nation Party.

  • "Pope enjoys private time after slamming Islam", - Agence France-Presse' choice of headline betrays their ignorance. Hat tip to Amy Welborn.

  • Needed: A sense of irony and a clue - Amy Welborn notes that burning the Pope in effigy "is not an effective way to argue against someone who has questioned your religion's relationship to violence."

  • The Pope’s speech: lending Islam a helping hand to avoid a downward spiral, by Samir Khalil Samir, SJ (AsiaNews.It Sept. 15, 2006):
    It is necessary to keep in mind that what the Pope did was prepare and deliver a speech as an academic, a philosopher, a top theologian whose arguments and fine points may not be easily grasped.

    The media—which should indulge in some self-criticism of its own—picked out those remarks from the speech that it could immediately use and superimposed them on the current international political context, on the ongoing confrontation between the West and the Muslim world, taking a step back into what Samuel Huntington called a ‘Clash of civilisations’. In reality, in his speech the Pope outlined a path that runs contrary to this view. The goal he has in mind is actually to engage others in a dialogue and of the most beautiful kind. . . .

    Comments made by Western Muslims were superficial and fed the circus-like criticism. In a phone-in programme on al-Jazeera yesterday, many viewers called in to criticise the Pope but no one knew about what. These were just emotional outbursts in response to hearsay concerning the Pope talking about jihad and criticising Islam, when in fact all that is false. Let me say why. . . .

  • Indian Catholic relays the complete text of the Vatican statement on Pope's remarks on Islam:
    Concerning the reaction of Muslim leaders to certain passages of the Holy Father's address at the University of Regensburg, it should be noted that what the Holy Father has at heart -- and which emerges from an attentive reading of the text -- is a clear and radical rejection of the religious motivation for violence.

    It was certainly not the intention of the Holy Father to undertake a comprehensive study of the jihad and of Muslim ideas on the subject, still less to offend the sensibilities of Muslim faithful.

    Quite the contrary, what emerges clearly from the Holy Father's discourses is a warning, addressed to Western culture, to avoid "the contempt for God and the cynicism that considers mockery of the sacred to be an exercise of freedom" (homily, Sept. 10). A just consideration of the religious dimension is, in fact, an essential premise for fruitful dialogue with the great cultures and religions of the world.

    And indeed, in concluding his address in Regensburg, Benedict XVI affirmed how "the world's profoundly religious cultures see this exclusion of the divine from the universality of reason as an attack on their most profound convictions. A reason which is deaf to the divine and which relegates religion to the realm of subcultures is incapable of entering into the dialogue of cultures."

    What is clear then, is the Holy Father's desire to cultivate an attitude of respect and dialogue toward other religions and cultures, including, of course, Islam.

  • From the Vatican website, additional comments from Cardinal Bertone. And from the American Papist:
    Actually, I'm fairly impressed with Bertone's choice of words. It's no surprise, after all, that Pope Benedict would be "extremely upset" that "some portions of his speech were able to sound offensive" to Muslims - their response being, of course, completely unreasonable. I'd be upset too.
  • From a Reuters report (Pope sorry his Islam speech found offensive, by Stephen Brown. Sept. 16, 2006), further notes on the Muslim reaction:
    "How can (the Pope) imply that Muslims are the creators of terrorism in the world while it is the followers of Christianity who have aggressed against every country of the Islamic world?" prominent Saudi cleric Salman al-Odeh said. "Who attacked Afghanistan and who invaded Iraq?"

    In Libya, the General Instance of Religious Affairs said the "insult ... pushes us back to the era of crusades against Muslims led by Western political and religious leaders".

    Turkish paper Vatan quoted a member of the ruling Justice and Development Party saying Benedict "will go down in history in the same category as leaders like Hitler and Mussolini".

  • Teófilo de Jesús (Vivificat) wonders where was the enlightened voice of Muslim protest when Ayman al Zawahiri and Adam Gadahn issued an "invitation to Islam", denigrating the Christian faith as a "hollow shell of a religion, whose followers cling to an empty faith and a false conviction of their inevitable salvation"?

  • Don't Know Nothin' 'Bout History - PostWatch examines the reactions, and the comments of the Pope, in light of the history of Muslim-Christian relations.

  • Two West Bank Churches Hit by Firebombs Over Pope Comments, reports Ali Daraghmeh (AP) The Washington Post Sept. 16, 2006.

  • Pope Rage on the Internet; church bombings in Gaza, another roundup of the Muslim reaction by Michelle Malkin.

  • A hardline cleric linked to Somalia's powerful Islamist movement has called for Muslims to "hunt down" and kill Pope Benedict XVI, reports Agence France-Presse (The Age Sept. 17, 2006):
    Sheikh Abubukar Hassan Malin urged Muslims to find the pontiff and punish him for insulting the Prophet Mohammed and Allah in a speech that he said was as offensive as author Salman Rushdie's novel The Satanic Verses.

    "We urge you Muslims wherever you are to hunt down the Pope for his barbaric statements as you have pursued Salman Rushdie, the enemy of Allah who offended our religion," he said in Friday evening prayers.

    "Whoever offends our Prophet Mohammed should be killed on the spot by the nearest Muslim," Malin, a prominent cleric in the Somali capital, told worshippers at a mosque in southern Mogadishu.

    We are awaiting Muslim repudiations of Sheikh Abubukar Hassan Malin, which we expect will be as furvent as their repudiation of Benedict XVI.

  • An apt assessment from Amy Welborn, who is tired of Muslim rage:
    The Pope held up an interesting question for us to contemplate: Who is God? How can we talk about God? What does God's existence and nature then imply about the way human beings are to live together on this planet? When true reason is abandoned as an attribute and expression of God, what hope is there for dialogue and peace?

    The "Muslim" response to the Pope ironically and unwittingly answers his question, don't you think?

Update (9/17/06)

  • This hardly comes as a suprise: Israeli-US plot behind pope's remarks: Iran hardline press Agence-France Press:
    Iranian hardline newspapers said there were signs of an Israeli-US plot behind remarks by Pope Benedict XVI that linked Islam to violence and created a wave of anger across the Muslim world.

    The daily Jomhuri Islami said Israel and the United States -- the Islamic republic's two arch-enemies -- could have dictated the comments to distract attention from the resistance of the Shiite militant group Hezbollah to Israel's offensive on Lebanon.

    Of course we know it's a Zionist conspiracy.

  • Reuters reports that The killing of an Italian Catholic nun in Mogadishu on Sunday may well be linked to anger among Muslims about Pope Benedict's recent remarks (Washington Post Sunday, September 17, 2006). (Extensive coverage on the murder of Sister Leonella Sgorbati by Michelle Malkin. And this just in Sister Leonella asked forgiveness for killers as she lay dying:
    Sister Leonella, a nun who devoted her life to helping the sick in volatile regions of Africa, used to joke that there was a bullet with her name engraved on it in Somalia. When the bullet came, she used her last breaths to forgive those responsible.

    "I forgive, I forgive," she whispered in her native Italian just before she died, the Rev. Maloba Wesonga told The Associated Press at the nun's memorial mass in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, on Monday.

  • Amy Welborn provides a helpful roundup of coverage from all perspectives -- Opining and analyzing in the UK (from the UK Observer; the Guardian and the Telegraph); from the Italian Avvenire, of the Italian bishops' conference; Muslim editorials and opinions and an article from Der Spegiel:
    The attacks against the Roman pontifex are especially grotesque. The harsh criticism, which often is accompanied by threats of violence, of Benedict’s speech in Regensburg is not only an attack on the head of the Catholic Church. The malicious misinterpretation of his words and the absurd suppositions of Islamic representatives are a head-on attack on free religious discourse. That more and more people in the Islamic world can be induced to follow these protests shows how much influence Islamic groups have gained there. The political intention is clear: A discussion between Christianity and Islam should only take place within the framework determined by political Islamism.

    We can do without this. Whoever agrees to this kind of “dialogue” relinquishes his right to free opinion. . . .

  • And from the Vatican today: Pope Benedict Apologizes in Person for Causing Muslims Offense, by Andrew Frye (Bloomberg.com):
    Pope Benedict XVI apologized in person today for causing offense to Muslims with a university lecture last week implicitly linking Islam to violence.

    ``I am truly sorry for the reactions caused by a brief passage of my speech,'' the pope said from his Castel Gandolfo summer retreat in Italy. ``These were quotations from a medieval text that do not express in any way my personal opinion.''

    Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood issued a statement saying the pope's apology is ``sufficient,'' Sky News reported. The head of the Cairo-based group, Mohammad Mahdi Akef, had previously said the pope ``aroused the anger of the whole Islamic world.''

    But again, while the media is playing this up (and the New York Times might crow in victory), see the linguistic analysis of the phrasing of this "apology" from Fr. John Zuhlsdorf: Benedict did not grovel during his Angelus address:
    . . . It is true that he distanced himself from that text. He said that Paleologus’s words were not his sentiments. You can say that this was an apology if you add all the elements together, but …. there it is. It won’t be enough, of course, for many (for the "thick"). It can be interpreted as an apology and, in a sense, it MUST be. There are in Islamic countries Christian communities in grave peril. Had the Pope not said something like this, those people would be in even greater danger. He had to apologize without apologizing while keeping his agenda on the table. . . .

    The upshot of today’s address was: "Read the whole text and then let’s have a real discussion based on what I really said, not based on a brief citation I used in the speech."

Update (9/18/06)

  • "Joee Blogs - a Catholic Londoner" got a rude suprise when he attended Sunday Mass at Westminster Cathedral:
    Holy Mass on a Sunday is the very source and summit of the Catholic week, so my family decided this Sunday to make the trip to Westminster Cathedral together. As we came out about 100 Islamists were chanting slogans such as "Pope Benedict go to Hell" "Pope Benedict you will pay, the Muja Hadeen are coming your way" "Pope Benedict watch your back" and other hateful things. I'll post more pictures of it when I get more free time. It was a pretty nasty demonstration. . . .

  • From The American Thinker, The Pope, Jihad, and “Dialogue” (Sept. 17, 2006) an excellent article by Dr. Andrew Bostom -- who, as author of The Legacy of Jihad (Prometheus Books, 2005), probably knows a tad something about the history of Islamic expansion).

    Bostom provides some rich and unsettling detail behind the now infamous exchange between "the late 14th century 'Dialogue Held With A Certain Persian, the Worthy Mouterizes, in Anakara of Galatia' between the Byzantine ruler Manuel II Paleologus, and a well-educated Muslim interlocutor." It's a must-read. And if that perks your interest, here is a RedState interview with the author.

  • From the RatzingerForum (courtesy of Rcesq), an interview with emeritus theologian Adel-Theodore Khoury (Frankfurter Allgemeine Sept. 17, 2006), whose book the Pope cited in his Regensburg lecture. [Translated into English]:
    Professor Khoury, what kind of day did you have yesterday?

    The media called all day. Television was here. I've never experienced anything like this before.

    Did you ever expect that your book would cause such an uproar?

    An edition of Byzantine sources in French that appeared in 1966? Please.

    Can you tell us something about the context of the quotation?

    The Emperor and the Persion scholar met in a Muslim military camp outside Constantinople. There in an open atmosphere and highly polemically, they discussed each other's religion. Both sides presented critical formulations to the other side, neither spared the other. The Pope did not use this quotation, however, to say something about Islam. That was not his theme at all. He used it only as a bridge to his next thoughts. The crucial sentence appears somewhat later: not to act reasonably is against God's nature. He was concerned about the question of God's will. That is moreover also a significant topic of discussion in Islamic theology.

    You are a scholar of Islam. Do you believe that this quotation correctly characterized Islam?

    Once again: that was not what the Pope was talking about in this lecture. Otherwise, one would have to add a few more remarks, because the quotation does not present the thought of the Koran precisely. It is not about conversion by the sword, but rather about the conquest and rule by the sword with simultaneous religious tolerance, at least for religions of the Book. If the Pope had been concerned about Islam, he would have had to point out entirely different streams of thought, which also demonstrate the reasonableness of God's actions. Furthermore, you can find passages in the Koran where conversion by argument and just action is valued.

    How do you explain the great rage in the Muslim world?

    see it in the context of the great tensions of the present day. Every one is so sensitive that misunderstandings arise. Many wanted from the Pope some words of differentiation, a categorization, an: "I, Benedict XVI, do not see Islam in this way."

    Would you have advised the Pope to make such a comment?

    I might have. He could have clarified that he was referring only to a radical minority of Muslim, the Islamists prepared for violence. That is how the Turkish Hurriyet understood it, and I believe, correctly: Emperor Manuel's statement only applies to a minority of Muslims today.

  • Syrian blogger Ammar Abdulhamid gets it:
    Have all leaders, religious and political, in the so-called Muslim World, become illiterate all of a sudden? Or are they intent on using every little opportunity that presents itself to prove in deed what they continue to deny in words, namely: that Islamic civilization and culture are dead, and that Muslims are adamant on continuing their head-long descent into barbarity?
    Ammar Abdulhamid lives in Silver Spring, Maryland. He left Damascus, Syria, due to his increasing and vocal criticism of the ruling regime and its president. Read his post. It's really too bad this couldn't come from, say, a blogger in the Middle East -- but clear-headed thinking nonetheless.
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Pope Benedict XVI's Apostolic Journey to Bavaria Sept. 9-14, 2006

On September 9th, a joyful Pope Benedict "set foot, for the first time since [his] elevation to the Chair of Peter, on German and Bavarian soil," to be among his homeland and his people and visit some cherished places in his life.

The Apostolic Journey of His Holiness Benedict XVI to München, Altötting and Regensburg September 9-14, 2006. The intinerary of the Holy Father's trip is posted to the Vatican website, according to which we've organized the following compilation.

Introduction / General Resources

Saturday 9 September

Papal Addresses

Coverage & Commentary

Sunday 10 September

Papal Addresses

Coverage & Commentary

  • Pope and German Leaders Talk Ecumenism, Meets President Köhler and Chancellor Merkel. Zenit News Service. Sept. 10, 2006.

  • Western Societies Deaf to God, Says Pope Zenit News Service. Sept. 10, 2006:
    Western societies suffer from a "hardness of hearing" of all things that have to do with God, thus impeding a correct perception of reality, says Benedict XVI.

    The Pope said this today when celebrating Mass on Munich's fairgrounds, attended by some 250,000 people, the first Mass of his fourth international trip.

    Addressing his fellow countrymen of Bavaria, the Holy Father said: "There is not only a physical deafness ... there is also a 'hardness of hearing' where God is concerned, and this is something from which we particularly suffer in our own time.

    "Put simply, we are no longer able to hear God -- there are too many different frequencies filling our ears."

  • Benedict XVI challenges Munich crowd to fight relativism, by Bill Howard. Exclusive coverage from the Colorado Catholic Herald. Sept. 10, 2006.

  • A Day in Munich, by Amy Welborn Open Book Sept. 10, 2006.

Monday 11 September

Papal Addresses

Coverage & Commentary

  • AP Pope Benedict makes visit to birthplace, by Victor L. Stimpson. Sept. 11, 2006:
    Benedict XVI spent a sentimental day in his Bavarian homecoming Monday, visiting the town where he was born, the church where he was baptized and his favorite pilgrimage site.

    He was also reunited with his 82-year-old brother, Georg, a retired priest and choir director who prayed with Benedict before the font where he was baptized in tiny Marktl am Inn.

  • Vatican: Act of vandalism against Pope’s house is no cause for concern Sept. 11, 2006:
    The director of the Press Office of Holy See, Fr. Federico Lombardi, indicated yesterday that the actions of vandals against the birth home of Pope Benedict XVI in Bavaria is “a minor incident” and not a cause of major concern.
  • Mary takes center stage at Pope Benedict’s second Mass in Bavaria Altotting, Sep. 11, 2006 (CNA):
    The Marian Shrine of Altötting, one of Bavaria’s most famous pilgrimage sites, was an appropriate place for the second Mass celebrated by the Pope Benedict XVI on his trip home. Mary, the Mother of God and “woman of prayer,” would be the subject of the New Testament readings as well as the homily of the Holy Father. . . .
  • Pope encourages seminarians, priests, and religious to remain with the Lord Altotting, Sep. 11, 2006 (CNA):
    Prior to leaving the town of Altötting for his birthplace of Marktl am Inn, Pope Benedict XVI prayed Vespers with the seminarians, priests, and religious of Bavaria and those who support their vocations. The Pontiff led the evening prayer service from the Basilica of Saint Anne.

    Following the initial prayers of the service, and the Psalms beautifully intoned by a choir, the Pope reflected on the Vocation to the priesthood and religious life. . . .

  • Pope Tells of Key to Awaken Vocations; Meeting at Shrine Turns Toward Prayer Zenit News Service. "Benedict XVI stressed that if Catholics pray with profound faith the Church will receive the vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life that it needs."

  • "Brothers", by Amy Welborn. Open Book Sept. 11, 2006. Three images speak more than a thousand words.

  • Benedict blesses new adoration chapel, stresses role of Mary, by Bill Howard. Colorado Catholic Herald Sept. 11, 2006. On his second full day in Bavaria, Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Mass and blessed a new Eucharistic adoration chapel in Altotting, led Vespers inside the Cathedral of St. Anne there, visited the home of his birthplace in Marktl am Inn and finished the day at a seminary in Regensburg.

Tuesday 12 September

Papal Addresses

News Coverage & Commentary

  • Faith and reason must come together in a new way, Holy Father says Catholic News Agency. Sept. 12, 2006:
    The former Professor Joseph Ratzinger returned to his old university today to hold a conference on the relation of faith and reason. Pope Benedict XVI told professors and students at the University of Regensburg that, “only if reason and faith come together in a new way” can mankind face the dangerous possibilities now facing it.
    See also:
  • Pope Gives His Cardinal's Ring to Mary at Altoetting Zenit News Service. Sept. 12, 2006:
    Benedict XVI gave his cardinal's ring to the Black Virgin of Altoetting, at the most famous shrine of Germany and the "religious heart" of Bavaria.

    The Holy Father made the gesture Monday. As Archbishop Joseph Ratzinger, he received the cardinal's ring in 1977 from Pope Paul VI, who named him cardinal of Munich.

    Vatican sources said that the ring was kept by the Holy Father's brother Georg, 82, who is also a priest and who lives in Regensburg.

    Monsignor Georg Ratzinger gave the Pope the ring on Monday, to give to the Blessed Virgin, to whom he is very devoted.

  • Pope tells Protestants, Orthodox, let us bear witness in love, “that the world may believe” Catholic News Agency. September 15, 2006:
    At the conclusion of his fourth day in Bavaria, Pope Benedict XVI prayed with members of Germany’s Orthodox and Protestant community. Leading a Vesper service at Regensburg’s Cathedral, the Pontiff told those gathered that they must not loose track of what is central to their dialogue - their common belief in Christ - and that they should bear witness to their common faith “in such a way that it shines forth as the power of love.”

    The liturgy, which was punctuated by German hymns, common to all traditions, also included traditional Orthodox chant and a response from leaders of all three Christian groups.

    Pope Benedict began his reflection by welcoming the religious leaders and noting that at the heart of the liturgy is the praying of the Psalms, which connects the Christian church with Jewish believers as well. . . .

Wednesday 13 September

Papal Addresses

News Coverage & Commentary

  • Pope Enjoys Private Time Near End of German Trip Deutsche-Welle Sept. 13, 2006: Pope Benedict XVI knelt in prayer at the graves of his mother, father and sister on Wednesday in the emotional highpoint of his six-day visit to his native Bavaria.

  • Benedict XVI Visits Tomb of His Parents and Sister, Spends time with Brother Zenit News Service. Sept. 13, 2006:
    . . . Today, kneeling next to his brother, Monsignor Georg Ratzinger, 82, who was standing supported by a walking stick, the Pope recollected himself in prayer for a while at the tomb, covered by red and white roses.

    Written on the stone were the names of his parents -- his father, Joseph Ratzinger, who died in 1959; his mother, Maria, who died in 1963 -- and his sister, also called Maria, who died in 1991.

    After praying, Benedict XVI blessed the tomb with holy water, a gesture which his brother then repeated.

  • Pope’s friends say fame has not changed Joseph Ratzinger. Catholic News Agency. Sept. 13, 2006:
    . . . The Richardi family has also experienced the humility and openness of the Pope. Their friendship with him began at the end of the 1960’s. At that time Mr. Richardi was a professor at the same university where Ratzinger taught. “Here in Pentling he has always been sort of a member of the family,” said Margarete Richardi. It was Joseph Ratzinger who presided at the marriage of their two daughters and baptized their grandchildren. He also recently celebrated Mass for their 40th wedding anniversary.

    The Richardis also told of how the whole family has adopted the Pope. Margarete recalled an instance when her grandson Sebastian, then two, said suddenly, “Cardinal, come here, I want to show you something.” A few minutes later she saw the two kneeling down on the floor and playing dominos together. . . .

  • Regensburg Jewish community treats pope's entourage to a kosher lunch Catholic News Service (by way of Argent by the Tiber):
    REGENSBURG, Germany (CNS) -- The pope's entourage was treated to a kosher lunch at Regensburg's Jewish community center while Pope Benedict XVI dined with his brother. Bishop Gerhard Muller of Regensburg phoned representatives of the local Jewish community and asked if the synagogue community center could host 25 people Sept. 13 while the pope was eating lunch across the street in Msgr. Georg Ratzinger's apartment. The Regensburg Diocese offered to provide the food, but the Jewish community resisted. Any food that comes into the center has to be kosher, and the rabbi has to guarantee it. The synagogue committee suggested its members could provide kosher food for the group. And so the Vatican entourage was treated to a kosher buffet lunch.
  • Pope Tells of Basis for Religious-Cultural Dialogue Zenit News Service. Sept. 13, 2006:
    In an address at the university where he was once a professor, Benedict XVI established the basis for dialogue between cultures and religions: a new relationship between faith and reason.

    The Pope's proposal, presented in an address of an academic nature, resonated Tuesday afternoon in the University of Regensburg's main auditorium.

    In this university, which now has 25,000 students, Joseph Ratzinger was vice rector and professor from 1969 to 1971. . . .

  • Pope emphasizes the “transforming” power of beautiful liturgy Catholic News Agency Sept. 13, 2006:
    Speaking of the tremendous value of the organ as a liturgical instrument, the Pope reminded a group of his native Bavarians today that music and song are “themselves part of the liturgical action,” which makes us more capable, “of transforming the world.”

    On what has been called his “private” day, Pope Benedict XVI remained in the town of Regensburg to take part in a brief ceremony to bless the refurbished organ of the historic Alte Kapelle. Earlier in the day, the 79 year old Pope had celebrated a private Mass at the city’s Seminary of St. Wolfgang.

Thursday 14 September

Papal Addresses

News Coverage & Commentary

  • Pope meets with crowd, neighbors as he visits home in Pentling, by Tess Crebbin. Catholic News Service. Sept. 14, 2006:
    . . . "May God bless you all," [Benedict] said, adding the Bavarian phrase "Vergelt's Gott," which means "May God repay you for your kindness."

    "I want to thank you for your good neighborhood spirit; in our thoughts we will always remain connected," he said.

    Then he walked out among the crowd, separated from the people only by a thin plastic band.

    A police officer told Catholic News Service, "In Pentling, nobody is going to harm him.

  • Pope Urges Witness to Faith in Secularized World Zenit News Agency. Sept. 14, 2006. Benedict XVI bid farewell to Germany, summarizing the key message he wished to leave his homeland on his Bavaria visit: "Those who believe are never alone."

  • Pope tells priests, you must rely on God not your own powers Catholic News Agency Sept. 14, 2006:
    On the last day of his Bavarian Tour Pope Benedict XVI was greeted with applause and broad smiles as he addressed a gathering of priests and permanent deacons at the famed Cathedral of St. Mary in Freising, Germany. The Pontiff abandoned his prepared text to speak to the men from the heart of an Apostle, telling them to recognize the limits of their own powers and to rely upon the Lord. . . .

Post-Journey Appraisals and Wrap-Ups

  • "Benedict Sheds Image of Dour Theologian", announces Victor L. Stimpson. The Guardian Sept. 13, 2006:
    Pope Benedict XVI has delighted fellow Bavarians by wading into crowds and kissing babies, shedding the image of a dour theologian from his quarter-century at the Vatican.

    He is not only growing into his job after 17 months in the papacy, but appears to enjoy it.

  • Munich, Altötting, Regensburg: Diary of a Pilgrimage of Faith, by Sandro Magister. www.Chiesa September 14, 2006. An anthology of the homilies and speeches delivered by Benedict XVI during his trip to Bavaria. “Faith’s vision embraces heaven and earth, past, present and future, eternity. And yet it is simple...”

Giving credit where credit is due, this post would not be possible were it for the excellent coverage of Amy Welborn (Open Book), Gerard Augustinus (Closed Cafeteria) and the fellow appreciators of Papa Benedict at the RatzingerForum).
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Sunday, September 03, 2006

Pope Benedict XVI Roundup!

Greetings and welcome to another installment of the Pope Benedict Roundup, an occasional -- usually monthly -- roundup of news and commentary on the Holy Father and all things Benedict. You can view previous editions at the recently-established Benedict Blog, the blog of the Pope Benedict XVI Fan Club.

Pope Benedict XVI and the "Evolution Debate"

This weekend (September 2-3, 2006) Pope Benedict is taking some time to gather with a group of close friends, students and scholars in a private seminar to discuss the topic of Darwinian evolution. Ian Fisher ( Pope Benedict and his ex-students holding seminar on evolution, by Ian Fisher. The New York Times Sept. 2, 2006) reports on those attending:

As might be expected from a German professor, all sides of the evolution question will get a hearing, though with an emphasis on skepticism. The seminar on Friday reportedly began with a presentation by Peter Schuster, an eminent molecular biologist, president of the Austrian Academy of Sciences and a defender of evolution.

There will be three other speakers to the study group, most notably Cardinal Christoph Schönborn of Vienna, who sparked a contentious debate last year after he wrote an Op-Ed article for The New York Times questioning evolution. The article was submitted by the same public relations firm used by the Discovery Institute.

The two other speakers are Professor Robert Spaemann, a German philosopher who has criticized evolution as a full philosophical theory; and the Reverend Paul Elbrich, a Jesuit priest and scientist whose work on proteins questions whether chance alone could play the decisive role in evolution.

Insight Scoop's Mark Brumley also provides some useful information on the participants in the Schuelerkreis:

This meeting is not an official Vatican function. The participants are former theology students of Joseph Ratzinger who are interested in this topic but who are, for the most part, by no means experts on the subject, certainly not on the scientific details of it. Nor do they represent themselves as experts. Their expertise is theology.

To be sure, the organizers of the Schuelerkreis have asked some experts on evolution and philosophy to participate. But their participation seems aimed at helping the theologians present to discuss the subject matter with greater scientific and philosophical precision. There is no indication of a forthcoming formal agreement by theologians and scientists or formal statement on the subject once the discussion ends.

(Hat tip: Blog by the Sea).

The seminar has been the source of much (and sometimes conflicting) speculatation by the press:

  • The New Scientist asserted that Benedict's intention was to "firm-up the Catholic Church’s stance on Darwinian evolution" in response to "mixed messages, with some senior figures supporting Darwinism and others denouncing it" (Papal summit to debate Darwinian evolution, by Andy Coughlan August 30, 2006)
  • John Hooper of The Guardian announced that the Pope prepares to embrace theory of intelligent design (August 28, 2006), and that the meeting "could herald a fundamental shift in the Vatican's view of evolution."
  • AlterNet suggested that Pope may ditch evolution / Ratz flirts with creationism. Quipped Lindsay Beyerstein, "Maybe he'll re-condemn Galileo next."
  • And Time journalist Jeff Israely downplayed the notion of a "decisive shift' (The Pope and Darwin Time August 31, 2006):
    . . . don't expect the Catholic Church to start disputing Darwin's basic findings, which Pope John Paul II in 1996 called "more than a hypothesis." Moreover, advocates of the teaching in U.S. schools of intelligent design — which holds that nature is so complex that it must be God's doing — should not count on any imminent Holy See document or papal pronouncement to help boost their cause. This weekend's private retreat is an annual gathering of the Pope's former theology students to freely discuss one topic of interest, without the aim of reaching any set conclusion.
Only a week ago, it was reported that Pope Benedict had "sacked" papal astronomer Fr. George Coyne over the evolution debate" (Simon Caldwell, Daily Mail. While Fr. Coyne submitted his need for chemotherapy treatment as the reason for stepping down from his post, his criticism of Cardinal Schonborn in the August 2005 London Tablet and alleged reputation for "theologically risque statements", together with Schonborn's invitation to address this weekend's seminar, no doubt prompted some of the speculation by the press surrounding the event.

For an introduction to the weekend's debate as it relates to the Holy Father, you could do no better than to check out Benedict's thinking on creation and evolution, by John Allen Jr. in this week's edition of "All Things Catholic," in which -- drawing from Ratzinger's In the Beginning: A Catholic Understanding of the Story of Creation and the Fall -- he provides a summary of Pope Benedict's thinking on the subject in four basic concepts:

  1. Whatever the findings of the natural sciences, they will not contradict Christian faith, since ultimately the truth is one;
  2. As a scientific matter, the evidence for "micro-evolution" seems beyond doubt; the case for "macro-evolution" is less persuasive.
  3. Evolution has become a kind of "first philosophy" for enlightened thinkers, ruling out the possibility that life has any ultimate meaning. Here Christianity must draw the line.
  4. On the moral level, the widespread acceptance of evolution as a "first philosophy" is dangerous.
See also Reading Genesis with Cardinal Ratzinger, by Nicanor Pier Giorgio Austriaco. Homiletic & Pastoral Review December 2003.

Update [9-3-06]: Reuters Religion editor Tom Heneghan provides a good post-discussion report: Pope and former students ponder evolution, not "ID" Reuters, Sept. 3, 2006. "The three-day closed-door meeting at the papal summer residence of Castel Gandolfo outside Rome ended as planned without drawing any conclusions but the group plans to publish its discussion papers, said Father Joseph Fessio S.J."

Pope Benedict and the Middle East

  • "Our Lord Has Conquered With a Love Capable of Going to Death" Zenit News Service offers a translation of the address Benedict XVI delivered during a ceremony for Mideast peace over which he presided in the church of Rhemes-Saint-Georges in the Aosta Valley (July 25, 2006):
    The Lord has conquered on the cross. He has not conquered with a new empire, with a force that is more powerful than others, capable of destroying them; he has not conquered in a human manner, as we imagine, with an empire stronger than the other. He has conquered with a love capable of going to death.

    This is God's new way of conquering: He does not oppose violence with a stronger violence. He opposes violence precisely with the contrary: with love to the end, his cross. This is God's humble way of overcoming: With his love -- and only thus is it possible -- he puts a limit to violence. This is a way of conquering that seems very slow to us, but it is the true way of overcoming evil, of overcoming violence, and we must trust this divine way of overcoming.

    To trust means to enter actively in this divine love, to participate in this endeavor of pacification, to be in line with what the Lord says: "Blessed are the peacemakers, the agents of peace, because they are the sons of God" . . .

    Precisely at this time, a time of great abuse of the name of God, we have need of the God who overcomes on the cross, who does not conquer with violence, but with his love. Precisely at this time we have need of the Face of Christ to know the true Face of God and so be able to take reconciliation and light to this world. For this reason, together with love, with the message of love, we must also take the testimony of this God, of God's victory, precisely through the nonviolence of his cross.

    See also At the Summit on the Middle East, Benedict XVI Preaches the Cross of Jesus, by Sandro Magister. www.Chiesa July 26, 2006.

  • Mideast war brings pope's foreign policy agenda into clearer focus, by John Thavis. Catholic News Service August 4, 2006:
    With the war in Lebanon, the Vatican's Middle East policies under Pope Benedict XVI have come into clearer focus.

    To the surprise of some, they look just like the policies of Pope John Paul II.

    The Vatican's insistent call for an immediate cease-fire in Lebanon has highlighted a basic disagreement with the United States and some other Western governments. Backing Israel, the U.S. wants a cease-fire conditioned on a wider accord ultimately aimed at disarming Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon.

    The pope, on the other hand, has urged all sides to lay down their weapons now, saying nothing can be gained by the current fighting.

    Some parties have read into Benedict's words a "moral equivalence" between Israel and Hezbollah. In August, First Things Robert T. Miller criticized Pope Benedict XVI’s call for a ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, later vehemently objecting to what he perceived as the Pope's "unsupportable" pacifism. In War "no good to anyone" - The words of a Pacifist Pope? (August 19, 2006), Against The Grain (with due credit from RatzingerForum member "rcesq") explained why such a pacifist portrayal of the Pope was ultimately unsupportable. See also Mark Brumley's Does Israel = Hezbollah in B 16's Moral Calculus? Insight Scoop August 1, 2006.

  • Lebanon and Clashes of Civilization: How to Recognize the Enemy, by Sandro Magister. www.Chiesa. August 22, 2006: "More Gospel and less diplomacy: this is the new course set by Benedict XVI. But geopolitics also has its reasons." The theses of Vittorio E. Parsi, Giulio Andreotti, and the Jesuit scholar of Islam Samir K. Samir. Plus a comprehensive analysis by Pietro De Marco. (With Reactions and discussion on Amy Welborn's Open Book).

  • In July, Benedict also asked the cloistered religious of the Carmel of Quart, the monastery he visited near his summer retreat in the northern Italy on Sunday, to pray for peace in the Middle East and for the conversion of terrorists.

Liturgical Music Revisited

Further Commentary on Deus Caritas Est Other News and Commentary
  • The Activist Trap, National Review contributor Colleen Carroll Campbell examines Pope Benedict's caution to Christians concerning "faith based political activism":
    The activist trap that Pope Benedict warns against is a common and familiar one: The temptation to align too closely with a particular political party and demonize opponents, to equate one’s personal judgments with the eternal truths of the faith, and to define “the Christian position” on every policy issue, thus losing focus on the few fundamental moral questions where authentic Christian witness is most countercultural and most needed. Lurking beneath those temptations is the one Benedict criticizes most forcefully: The human urge to use social and political activism to distract from our deepest questions, most intimate struggles, and most urgent longings for truth, goodness, beauty — and God.

    While Benedict’s admonition against utopian social schemes and a materialist worldview seems particularly relevant to a Catholic liberals influenced by Marxist theories, conservatives should also beware becoming co-opted by political parties, hardened by ideology, negligent in charity, and hollowed out by incessant activity. In some ways, conservatives may need to hear Benedict’s message more than liberals. Those who believe most fervently in the socially transformative power of personal responsibility and personal conversion and in the existence of universal moral laws cannot expect to change the world through external activity and political victories alone. Their hope must lie in something deeper and more enduring, in the transcendent truths that can only be discovered in silence, solitude, and contemplation. As we leave summer behind and head into another contentious campaign season, Benedict’s advice — that we slow down, be still, and ponder the principles that inspire our activism — could not be more timely.

  • Pope Benedict brings new style to Vatican August 24, 2006. Philip Pullella, Reuters' Senior Correspondent in Rome, reflects on how the new Pope had introduced a change in style from his predecessor, Pope John Paul II:
    A much more reserved man than his predecessor, Benedict has installed a new, quieter style in the Vatican's "Sacred Palaces", as the Holy See's buildings are known in Italian.

    A German, the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger lets few "outsiders" into his private apartments, so hints of what is on his mind rarely trickle out.

    Even Vatican officials on other floors in the papal palace say they sometimes have trouble guessing what the Pope will decide.

    One source famously told me during the first year of the papacy: "I can assure you, we not only know zero, we know less than zero."

  • On Benedict XVI and Ecumenism August 21, 2006. Zenit News interviews Manuel González Muñana, professor of ecumenism at the San Pelagio Seminary in Cordoba, is author of "Ecumenismo y Nuevos Movimientos Eclesiales" (Ecumenism and New Ecclesial Movements), recently published by Monte Carmelo.

  • Pope chose unpretentious and thoughtful Bertone as Secretary of State within first months of Pontificate Catholic News Agency. August 18, 2006. An article published in the Italian journal “Il Riformista” provides a unique glimpse into the man Pope Benedict XVI chose to head what is arguably the most important dicastery of the Vatican. A surprising choice many Vatican insiders say, decided almost a year before it was announced.

    Amy Welborn (Open Book) provides excerpts from an interview with Bertone (from the Italian Il Giornale), along with an explanation of the responsibilities of the office.

  • On August 16, 2006, Pope Benedict remembered Brother Roger Schutz, founder of the ecumenical Taizé Community, one year after his death:
    "We pray to the Lord that the sacrifice of his life will contribute to consolidate the commitment to peace and solidarity of all those who have the future of humanity at heart," the Pope added.

    A day before Brother Roger's death, Benedict XVI received an affectionate letter from him in which he assured him of his ecumenical community's intention to "walk in communion with the Holy Father."

    Zenit News interviewed Roger's successor, Brother Alois Loeser, on the future of Taizé and its first year following the loss of its founder.

  • On August 13, 2006, Pope Benedict gave an unprecedented television interview to German television. Although giving one-on-one television interviews, no head of the Catholic church has ever gone before the cameras to handle a panel of questioners for a full hour.

    Pope Benedict XVI's interview with broadcasters Bayerische Rundfunk, Deutsche Welle, ZDF and Vatican Radio was held at his summer residence at Castelgandolfo on Aug. 5, 2006. The interview was conducted in German and translated and authorized by the Vatican. A transcript of Benedict XVI's interview is provided by Vatican Radio as well as a audio recording [RealAudio format]. Video of the interview is also available online.

    See also How the Pope Deftly Steers Through a Biased Media Interview, by John-Henry Westen. LifeSiteNews August 16, 2006.

  • At the August 9, 2006 General Audience, Pope Benedict spoke on John the Evangelist (continuing his catechesis on the 12 Apostles), and began with a brief explanation of the rationale behind his first encyclical (thanks to Amy Welborn):
    “It is not by chance that I wanted to start my first encyclical letter with the words of this Apostle: ‘God is love’ (Deus caritas est); those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them’ (1 Jn 4:16). It is very difficult to find such writings in other religions. And so such expressions bring us face to face with a fact that is truly unique to Christianity.”

    Starting out not from “an abstract treatment, but from a real experience of love, with direct and concrete reference, that may even be verified, to real people”, John highlights the components of Christian love that the pope summed up in three points. . . .

  • Fr. Edward T. Oakes on the "Dictatorship of Relativism" (First Things "On the Square" August 3, 2006):
    Ever since he coined the term “the dictatorship of relativism” shortly before his election as Pope Benedict XVI, the phrase has continued to haunt me. At first glance it sounds like an oxymoron: How can a relativist seek to impose a dictatorship? Aren’t dictators called absolutists for a reason? If we define a relativist as someone who says that ethical norms vary from one community to the next and from one period of history to the next, how can a relativist forbid the moral norms that another community chooses to live by? But, of course, that happens all the time, as when Catholic Charities in California is ordered by a court to provide contraceptive costs in the medical insurance plans for their employees. Personally, I think David Bentley Hart is right, who once told me in conversation that there are no relativists, except maybe a few sophomores in a dorm on the campus of Arizona State University. . . .
    A somewhat more snide and ridiculing treatment of the phrase is delivered by the New Oxford Review (Bishop Morlino Discusses the 'Dictatorship of Relativism' July / August 2006).

  • Elizabeth Schiltz, of the Catholic legal theory blog Mirror of Justice, devotes her first post to Benedict XVI on Women and St. Augustine (July 24, 2006). The discussion is carred on by Ave Maria law professor Kevin Lee (Lee on John Paul II and Benedict XVI August 1, 2006).

  • During his summer vacation in northern Italy, Pope Benedict was reported to be working on a new book and encyclical (Catholic News Agency, Jul. 18, 2006):
    According to Salvatore Mazza, special correspondent for the Italian daily Avvenire, “It seems that, among other things, he has in his hands the book which he was writing before being elected to succeed John Paul II...a theological text.”

    The book, according to other sources close to the Vatican, will consider Christ and his relation to the human race, as well as the relationship between Christianity and the other world religions.

    Another work that may be occupying the Pontiff’s time prior his trip to Germany in September, is a new social encyclical centered on the value of human work.

    The previously noted sources speculate that the work may take the name, “Labor Domini,” or, “The Work of the Lord.” The encyclical is to speak about a Christian view of human labor, of the importance of work in society, and of work as a human necessity and duty.

  • "I am learning how to be the pope", by Salvatore Mazza. Avvenire. A translation of the article kindly provided by Teresa Bendetta, relayed by Closed Cafeteria.

  • The August, 2006 issue of Inside the Vatican features an interview with Fr. Joseph Fessio, SJ. Founder and director of Ignatius Press (leading publisher of Pope Benedict's works in English), co-founder of Adoremus, and Provost of Ave Maria University in Naples, Florida, Fessio completed his doctoral thesis on "The Ecclesiology of Hans Urs Von Balthasar" under then Professor Joseph Ratzinger, at the University of Regensburg, Bavaria in 1975.

    In his interview, Fr. Fessio addresses various issues of B16's first year, including the expectation that "many of his supporters expected a tough crackdown on dissenters in the Church," the significance of recent appointments in the Curia; the appointment of Cardinal Levada as new prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, liturgical renewal and the prospect of a "universal indult" for the celebration of the Tridentine liturgy.

  • Pro Multis - by Fr. Z (What Does The Prayer Really Say?"):
    Back in 2004 when I wrote my weekly columns about the Eucharistic Prayers, I lingered over the consecration of the Precious Blood in four articles. In those articles I exposed the bad philological arguments used to justity the bad translation "for all". To my knowledge no one had ever looked at it from that angle before. My old boss and still great friend, His Eminence Augustine Card. Mayer, one of the holiness men on earth, gave my articles to his close friend and colleague Joseph Card. Ratzinger. Soon thereafter I had a note from his Eminence (now His Holiness) about those articles. Also, I was able to write something up for a certain Prefect of a certain Congregation on this point. . . .
New Books by Pope Benedict XVI

Pope Benedict XVI: Servant of the Truth

Do you know the real Pope Benedict?

Journalist Peter Seewald does. After writing an unfair attack on Cardinal Ratzinger, he was urged by Catholic readers to meet with the man he was maligning. He did so—and the result was two book-length interviews, Salt of the Earth and God and the World. Seewald also returned to his Catholic faith, saying that Ratzinger was the one who “taught me what it meant to swim against the stream.”

This book, written mainly by Seewald, describes the paths of Joseph Ratzinger’s life from his birthplace in Bavaria all the way to being the first German Pope in 482 years. It is illuminated with a stunning collection of some of the most personal, and most surprising, photographs. These show the Pope as he really is: “a humble servant in the vineyard of the Lord”.

You can preview sample pages of Servant of the Truth on Ignatius.com.

Images of Hope: Meditations on Major Feasts

In Images of Hope: Meditations on Major Feasts, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI) masterfully weaves together Scripture, history, literature and theology as he reflects on major feasts of the liturgical calendar. In each chapter, he examines works of sacred art that illustrate the hope we celebrate in our most important Christian holy days.

What do the humble ox and ass at the manger of the Christ Child tell us about Christmas? In an icon of Christ's Ascension, what do the Savior's hands held in blessing promise us? What is the meaning of the sword held by the great statue of Saint Paul before the Roman church that bears his name?

These and many other questions are explored with depth and sensitivity in this collection of meditations by the man who became Pope Benedict XVI. Several beautiful colored images of the relevant paintings, mosaics and sculptures accompany the rich and detailed text.

What It Means to be a Christian (Ignatius, June 2006):

Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI, writes eloquently and persuasively about how one can live as a serious Christian in today’s secular world. He talks in depth about the true meaning of faith, hope, and love--the love of God and the love of neighbor. He also discusses at length the crucial importance of a lived faith, for the believer himself as well as being a witness for our age, and striving to bring faith in line with the present age that has veered off into rampant secularism and materialism. He passionately encourages the reader to practice a deep, abiding Christian faith that seeks to be at the service of humanity.

As Joseph Ratzinger mentions in the preface, "the book presents in written form three sermons that the author preached in the Cathedral at Muenster to a congregation from the Catholic Student Chaplaincy, December 13-15, 1964."

Ignatius Insight recently published an excerpt from the text: Why Do We Need Faith?.

And on a Lighter Note . . .

  • Baby Benedict is only 10 weeks old and already he's received a special letter from the Pope The personalised note on Vatican headed-notepaper arrived on baby Benedict's doorstep after officials in Rome learned the tot had been named after the Pope, with whom he also shares a birthday. Lancanshire Evening Post June 28, 2006.

  • "Suited Up", by Michelle Arnold. Apparently radical Traditionalist site Tradition In Action has blown a gasket over a photograph of Then-Cardinal Ratzinger wearing a Suit. (TIC mistakes it for a recent photo of the Pope on vacation, while others have dated the photo to a retreat the then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger and his brother took together in 2004).

    Rocco Palmo (Whispers in the Loggia) comments on the photo of "The Brothers Ratzi":

    More than anything, though, the shot underlines the strong bond the Pope enjoys with his one living relative, his older brother Msgr Georg Ratzinger. The two were ordained priests together in 1951, share a deep affinity for music (the Papstbruder served for many years as director of the famed choir of Regensburg Cathedral), and on next month's Bavarian homecoming, little brother Joseph has blocked out a private day with Msgr Georg at the home the former built on a cul-de-sac, which then-Cardinal Ratzinger was anxiously looking forward to retiring to.... For those who've forgotten, everything porcelain and feline decorates the house in the Regensburg suburb of Pentling. (The other Ratzinger sibling, Maria, served as her brother's housekeeper and companion until her death in 1991.)

  • A group of altar boys from the Bavarian city of Ratisbona are handing out the Pope’s favorite cookie in preparation for his September visit. During the Pope’s visit to Ratisbona on September 12, 15,000 altar boys from all of the dioceses in Bavaria will take part in the Papal Mass. (Catholic News Agency). Zenit News Service has also relayed what's on the agenda for the Pope's Bavarian trip, the fourth international trip of his pontificate, from Sept. 9-14.

  • Eggs Pope Benedict, by Jimmy Akin: "While wandering the Web sniffing out something to blog about, my nose latched onto an aroma of eggs. Curious, I checked it out. Apparently, in the wake of Pope Benedict XVI's election, some people were having a bit of good-natured fun with the new pope's chosen name."

  • Nice shots of Pope Benedict playing the piano and writing in his study, courtesy of la Repubblica.it. According to Avvenire's reporter, Salvatore Mazza, "the Pope sits at the piano at least twice a day -- in the morning and the afternoon -- and plays his favorite classical pieces."

  • "When is a necklace not a necklace? Most likely when the Pope gives you one", says Robert Duncan, responding to the Spanish Prime Minister's office announcement that Pope Benedict XVI gave the wife of Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero a "pearl necklace with a cross" after their meeting in Valencia.

  • Matthias Beier's Pope Benedict XVI: The First Year (Tikkun, July 2006) gets the nomination for the most ridiculous appraisal of B16's first year in office, beginning with a demand for the Pope to "put on the table" his title as Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church as a "true test for openeness to ecumenical dialogue." Mr. Beir finds the Holy Father deficient on all counts -- from his activity on "peace and justice issues" to interreligious dialogue to his "attitude towards Islam."

    Even Benedict's reminder to the European Union of its “indispensable Christian roots" is found to be "dangerously reminiscent of the Nazi Christian argument that Jews had no place in a Christian country such as Germany." Beir ends his indictment with a demand that Benedict retract the claims of the "extremely inflammatory 2000 statement" Dominus Iesus and invite "Eugen Drewermann, Joan Chittester, Matthew Fox, Hans Kung, and Leonardo Boff, to a truly open dialogue."

    Matthias Beir is a Methodist pastor and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Pastoral Care and Counseling at Fordham University, and has recently published what he boasts is "a comprehensive analysis of a violent and fear-driven God-image in the heritage of the Judeo-Christian tradition from a theological, philosophical, and psychoanalytic perspective." Nice 'ecumenical' spirit, his.

    While some Catholic readers will be prompted to wonder what he is doing teaching at a Jesuit school, Carl Olson (Insight Scoop) protests: "what is most bothersome to me is not that Beier teaches at Fordham, but that someone who demonstrates the rhetorical acumen of Howard Dean and the polemical touch of a Jack Chick teaches at a university."

    Meanwhile, Gerald Augustinus (Closed Cafeteria) provides a fisking of Beier's rant against the Pope.

  • Finally, from Ignatius Press, Pope Benedict XVI "Wallpaper" for your computer desktop.
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