#Cardinal Ratzinger

[soiledlight]

"What Jesus preaches in the Sermon on the Mount, He now does; He does not offer violence against violence, as He might have done, but puts an end to violence by transforming it into love. The act of killing, of death, is changed into an act of love." -Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger

[professorambrius]

96th Birthday of Late Pope Benedict XVI

This past Sunday, April 16th, would have been the 96th Birthday of the Late Pope Benedict XVI.

Born Joseph Ratzinger, he had a devotion to the church and sereved as professor, Archbishop, Cardinal and later Pope when elected in the Conclave of 2005 after the death of Pope John Paul II.

As Pope, Benedict was known for his conseravtive views on matters and adherence to tradition. Yet despite his reputation for being stern, Benedict had a shy persoanlity and was quit gental according to those who knew him best.

One Febuary 28th, 2013, Benedict resigned from the Papacy, citing his advance age. He was succeded by Pope Francis. Now Pope Emertius, Benedict would continue to live on the grounds of the Vatican in a small former monastary, staying out of the public eye for the most part and leaving only once to visit his aling brother.

Benedict XVI passed away January 31st, 2023.

Loved by many and disliked by many, Pope Benedict XVI leaves behind a legacy that will be discussed for a great many years.

[popewearsprada]

You know Pope Benedict’s death and funeral didn’t go by without comments from Ma. Here are a few about this Nazi rally.

Tens of thousands of dummies waited 5 hours for goddamn Joe RatziNazinger’s FUN-eral ma$$. OMFG. He’s roasting 2 eternities in Hell.

Jesus X the stench/stinky old people. Especially the nun$. I see no smelly jiffy johns. Where does this sea of white weirdos POOP?

Note one and only lonely black cardinal.

Love the hats.

Joe RatziNazinger died today, 12-31-2022, Sat. Roasting in Hell with King Eddie, his bro King George, his daughter Queen Liz, Adolph. He should have been in prison. Happy Joey Ratzi Nazinger is roasting in Hell.

[kriswager]

Pope Benedict XVI has died

Pope Benedict XVI has died

Pope Benedict XVI was a conservative pope, who pushed the Catholic Church backwards in his eight years as the pope. He will be mostly known for being the first pontiff to step down in 600 years, but I hope he will also be remembered for the evils that he stood for, and never had to face the consequences of. Pope Benedict XVI was involved in covering up the massive child abuse happening in the…

[fear-not-beloved]

The theology of littleness is a basic category of Christianity. After all, the tenor of our faith is that God's distinctive greatness is revealed precisely in powerlessness. That in the long run, the strength of history is precisely in those who love, which is to say, in a strength that, properly speaking, cannot be measured according to categories of power. So in order to show who he is, God consciously revealed himself in the powerlessness of Nazareth and Golgotha. Thus, it is not the one who can destroy the most who is the most powerful...but, on the contrary, the least power of love is already greater than the greatest power of destruction. ― Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger/Pope Benedict

[givemearmstopraywith]

i kknow this may not be your area of knowledge but do you know why the pope is suddenly saying this stuff re: marxism? hes always been progressive and genuine in his beliefs (same gender stuff, the lunch w the drag queens, etc.) but to outright say "we should befriend communists" is surprising to me. power play? old age? hes also a communist? idk

i was raised catholic and spend most of my time at a jesuit college! it's a complicated issue, but i'll do my best. edit: i also want to say that i am both pro-francis and generally very unhappy with the church in general, so i've tried to be as objective as i can.

pope francis is, first, argentinian, and second, a jesuit. as a south american he knows liberation theology, a marxist-based theology of the poor which developed in south america during the 1980s. because of its association with marxism liberation theology was treated with huge suspicion by the catholic church. cardinal ratzinger, later benedict xvi, wrote a fairly nasty castigation of liberation theology in the 80s- if i find it i'll link it.

this is the context, i believe, of his comments on marxism: it's not only a home ideology for francis, it's more necessary than ever in our current social climate. francis has always been what most catholics would consider a liberally minded pope, he exhibits that fabulous tenet of catholic social teaching called "the preferential option for the poor," and everything he has done during his papacy gestures to this, including his encyclical on climate change, laudato si, and his recent moves towards affirmation of gay and trans people being baptized. even his tour of canada to make formal apologies for residential schools came about for similar reasons: it wasn't perfect, but the reason there hadn't been a formal catholic apology prior to francis was because doctrine around papal infallibility dictates that a sitting pope cannot refute or roll back the statements of a previous pope: an apology for the doctrine of discovery and residential schools would have constituted admitting that a previous pope had been wrong, which is tantamount to admitting that god himself is wrong, since the pope is the representative of god and a direct descendent of the apostle peter. doing as much throws the entire church into a very negative light, but francis apologized anyway- which, again, while deeply imperfect is a huge deal within the church, certainly infuriated a lot of conservatives, even if it seems essentially inadequate to non-catholics.

francis isn't a communist, i don't think, but he is good. he's very apart from what constitutes the majority of the catholic magisterium (ordained members of the church- priests, bishops, cardinals, etc)- a kind of internal division developed after vatican ii, where on one hand you had conservatives who preferred traditionalism, the type of leaders who wanted to keep things QT with the reagan administration who was funding mass murder in nicaraugua- that is, at it's core, the primary reason why liberation theology was rejected when it first emerged, why it has been slow to gain traction in the church. ratzinger was a staunch conservative, and john paul ii was less so; leadership in the church goes through cycles where traditionalists are usually followed by more liberal-minded popes, who appreciate vatican ii for the groundbreaking and monumental achievement that it was rather than acting as if it signified a breakdown of religion.

the other thing is francis being a jesuit: i have a lot of jesuit friends, have gotten most of my theological education from jesuits, and applied to a jesuit college for my phd. jesuits are incredibly socially minded, dedicated consistently to social awareness and justice, and less inclined towards enclosure and privation from the world at large than other orders. they are also dedicated to poverty, like franciscans. the jesuit order is not perfect (they still will not allow a women's jesuit order, and they have a dismal track record of colonialism) but francis is the first jesuit pope and this is a huge deal in terms of the type of theology that his leadership embodies as a result. jesuists are not as a monolith liberal-minded and forward thinking, but they are generally more ready to adapt and evolve catholicism to meet contemporary needs rather than maintainig strict adherence to traditional views at the expense of the body of christ- that is to say, the body of all believers, or all whom god loves, which is everyone. incidentally, leonardo boff, one of the fathers of liberation theology, was also jesuit.

this is a pretty and dirty answer to your question but i hope it makes sense- essentially francis is recognizing that the needs of god's people override that of the church, because god's people are the church equally or more than the magisterium is the church, but it is the magisterium who has been preferred historically. but he has surprisingly little room in which to make moves towards this because of canon law and other doctrines. he's doing his best, though, more than i ever thought i'd see: i appreciate and love him deeply.

[eternal-echoes]

The new document signed by Pope Francis and DDF Prefect Cardinal Victor Fernández was written in response to a bishop from the Philippines who had expressed concern at the growing number of Catholics in his diocese who are taking part in Freemasonry and asked for suggestions for how to respond pastorally. The dicastery’s response, dated Nov. 13, calls for “a coordinated strategy” involving all of the bishops in the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines to promote catechesis “in all parishes regarding the reasons for the irreconcilability between the Catholic faith and Freemasonry.” The Freemasons are the largest worldwide oath-bound secret society. Freemasonry promotes ideas and rituals incompatible with the Catholic faith, including indifferentism, or the position that a person can be equally pleasing to God while remaining in any religion, and a deistic concept of a “Great Architect of the Universe.” The Vatican document reaffirms that “those who are formally and knowingly enrolled in Masonic Lodges and have embraced Masonic principles” fall under the provisions of the Catholic Church’s 1983 “Declaration on Masonic Associations.” The 1983 declaration, signed by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger when he was prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, declares that Catholics who enroll in Masonic associations “are in a state of grave sin and may not receive holy Communion.”

[momentsbeforemass]

Benedict XVI

(by request, my homily from our Mass for the Dead for Pope Benedict XVI)

A few days ago, we learned of the death of Pope (Emeritus) Benedict XVI.

Before he was pope (when he was Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger) and even when he was pope, although he was a gentle soul, fond of cats, classical music, and playing the piano, he was popularly portrayed as grim and heartless.

Although he did more than anyone in Rome (including John Paul II) to end child abuse in the Church, he was often blamed for it.

Although he was a warm and open-minded scholar, he was branded a close-minded enforcer of inflexible dogma. Some even labelled him “God’s Rottweiler.”

Which says more about the people throwing the labels around that it does about him. If nothing else, it says that they never read anything that he wrote.

Because if you read anything that he wrote – whether as Benedict XVI or as Cardinal Ratzinger or even Father Ratzinger – what always shines through is his focus on what he saw as the essentials of our Faith: love and hope.

Which almost doesn’t make sense.

Because he grew up in Nazi Germany. When the horrors were happening, he was old enough to understand what was going on. When he was 14, his cousin was taken away and killed by the Nazis. His cousin’s crime? Having Down syndrome.

He literally saw humanity at its worst. He had every reason to despair, to give up – on himself and on humanity.

It would have been easy to turn away from it all. A lot of Germans of his generation did.

But that wasn’t him. God made him with a heart like Mary’s. And instead, he turned to God.

And gave us a very clear-eyed understanding of the heart of our Faith when he said,

"To have Christian hope means to know about evil and yet to go to meet the future with confidence.

The core of faith rests upon accepting being loved by God. Therefore, to believe is to say ‘Yes.’ Not only to God, but to creation, to creatures, above all, to people.

To try to see the image of God in each person and thereby to become one who loves."

That is the heart of Benedict XVI.

The news and social media have been filled with countless versions of Benedict XVI and his legacy, some offer a bit of insight on a good and godly man, others are little more than recycled caricatures.

But to me, this is the real legacy. This is what informed everything that he did, as a priest, as a professor, as a cardinal, and even as pope.

A heart full of love. A heart full of hope. A heart like Mary’s.

And a very Marian model of a life of faith. Not one just for saints and popes, but a life of faith available to each one of us.

All flowing from the call that God gives to each one of us. The call to say “Yes” to God.

And in so doing, “to say ‘Yes,’ not only to God, but to creation, to creatures, above all, to people. To try to see the image of God in each person and thereby to become one who loves."

In this new year, may God grant us the grace to live that legacy.

Today’s Readings

[thepastisalreadywritten]

SAINT OF THE DAY (July 5)

On July 5, the Catholic Church remembers Saint Anthony Mary Zaccaria.

A renowned preacher and promoter of Eucharistic adoration, he founded the order of priests now known as the Barnabites.

In 2001, the future Pope Benedict XVI, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, wrote the preface for a book on St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria, praising the saint as “one of the great figures of Catholic reform in the 1500s who was involved in the renewal of Christian life in an era of profound crisis.”

"The Italian saint deserves to be rediscovered as an authentic man of God and of the Church, a man burning with zeal, a demanding forger of consciences, a true leader able to convert and lead others to good.”

Anthony Mary Zaccaria was born into an Italian family of nobility in Cremona during 1502.

His father Lazzaro died shortly after Anthony's birth, and his mother Antonietta – though only 18 years old – chose not to marry again, preferring to devote herself to charitable works and her son's education.

Antonietta's son took after her in devotion to God and generosity toward the poor.

He studied Latin and Greek with tutors in his youth. He was afterward sent to Pavia to study philosophy.

He went on to study medicine at the University of Padua, earning his degree at age 22 and returning to Cremona.

Despite his noble background and secular profession, the young doctor had no intention of either marrying or accumulating wealth.

While caring for the physical conditions of his patients, he also encouraged them to find spiritual healing through repentance and the sacraments.

Anthony also taught catechism to children and went on to participate in the religious formation of young adults.

He eventually decided to withdraw from the practice of medicine, and with the encouragement of his spiritual director, he began to study for the priesthood.

Ordained a priest at age 26, Anthony is said to have experienced a miraculous occurrence during his first Mass, being surrounded by a supernatural light and a multitude of angels during the consecration of the Eucharist.

Contemporary witnesses marveled at the event and testified to it after his death.

Church life in Cremona had suffered decline in the late 15th and early 16th centuries.

The new priest encountered widespread ignorance and religious indifference among laypersons, while many of the clergy were either weak or corrupt.

In these dire circumstances, Anthony Mary Zaccaria devoted his life to proclaiming the truths of the Gospel both clearly and charitably.

Within two years, his eloquent preaching and tireless pastoral care is said to have changed the moral character of the city dramatically.

In 1530, Anthony moved to Milan, where a similar spirit of corruption and religious neglect prevailed.

There, he decided to form a priestly society, the Clerics Regular of St. Paul.

Inspired by the apostle's life and writings, the order was founded on a vision of humility, asceticism, poverty, and preaching.

After the founder's death, they were entrusted with a prominent church named for St. Barnabas and became commonly known as the “Barnabites.”

The priest also founded a women's religious order, the Angelic Sisters of St. Paul, and an organization, the Laity of St. Paul, geared toward the sanctification of those outside the priesthood and religious life.

He pioneered the “40 Hours” devotion, involving continuous prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.

In 1539, Anthony became seriously ill and returned to his mother's house in Cremona.

The founder of the Clerics Regular of St. Paul died on 5 July 1539, during the liturgical octave of the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, at the age of only 36.

Nearly three decades after his death, St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria's body was found to be incorrupt.

Pope Leo XIII beatified him on 3 January 1890 and canonized on 27 May 1897.

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 4.19 (after 1940)

1942 – World War II: In German-occupied Poland, the Majdan-Tatarski ghetto is established, situated between the Lublin Ghetto and a Majdanek subcamp. 1943 – World War II: In German-occupied Poland, the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising begins, after German troops enter the Warsaw Ghetto to round up the remaining Jews. 1943 – Albert Hofmann deliberately doses himself with LSD for the first time, three days after having discovered its effects on April 16, an event commonly known and celebrated as Bicycle Day. 1956 – Actress Grace Kelly marries Prince Rainier of Monaco. 1960 – Students in South Korea hold a nationwide pro-democracy protest against president Syngman Rhee, eventually forcing him to resign. 1971 – Sierra Leone becomes a republic, and Siaka Stevens the president. 1971 – Launch of Salyut 1, the first space station. 1971 – Charles Manson is sentenced to death (later commuted to life imprisonment) for conspiracy in the Tate–LaBianca murders. 1973 – The Portuguese Socialist Party is founded in the German town of Bad Münstereifel. 1975 – India's first satellite Aryabhata launched in orbit from Kapustin Yar, Russia. 1975 – South Vietnamese forces withdrew from the town of Xuan Loc in the last major battle of the Vietnam War. 1976 – A violent F5 tornado strikes around Brownwood, Texas, injuring 11 people. Two people were thrown at least 1,000 yards (910 m) by the tornado and survived uninjured. 1984 – Advance Australia Fair is proclaimed as Australia's national anthem, and green and gold as the national colours. 1985 – Two hundred ATF and FBI agents lay siege to the compound of the white supremacist survivalist group The Covenant, the Sword, and the Arm of the Lord in Arkansas; the CSA surrenders two days later. 1987 – The Simpsons first appear as a series of shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show, first starting with "Good Night". 1989 – A gun turret explodes on the USS Iowa, killing 47 sailors. 1993 – The 51-day FBI siege of the Branch Davidian building in Waco, Texas, USA, ends when a fire breaks out. Seventy-six Davidians, including 18 children under age 10, died in the fire. 1995 – Oklahoma City bombing: The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, USA, is bombed, killing 168 people including 19 children under the age of six. 1999 – The German Bundestag returns to Berlin. 2000 – Air Philippines Flight 541 crashes in Samal, Davao del Norte, killing all 131 people on board. 2001 – Space Shuttle Endeavour is launched on STS-100 carrying the Canadarm2 to the International Space Station. 2005 – Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger is elected to the papacy and becomes Pope Benedict XVI. 2011 – Fidel Castro resigns as First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba after holding the title since July 1961. 2013 – Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev is killed in a shootout with police. His brother Dzhokhar is later captured hiding in a boat inside a backyard in the suburb of Watertown. 2020 – A killing spree in Nova Scotia, Canada, leaves 22 people and the perpetrator dead, making it the deadliest rampage in the country's history. 2021 – The Ingenuity helicopter becomes the first aircraft to achieve flight on another planet.

[catenaaurea]

Pope Saint John Paul II with the two men who would succeed him as Bishop of Rome, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (Benedict XVI) and Jorge Cardinal Bergoglio (Francis)

[hotpinkandlimegreenlovinfangirl]

This is my latest post from The Autistic Catholic!

[de-gueules-au-lion-d-or]

« Un Jésus-Christ qui serait d'accord avec tout et avec tous, un Jésus-Christ auquel manquerait la « sainte colère », la dureté de la Vérité et l'Amour du vrai, ne serait pas le Jésus authentique tel que l'Écriture nous le montre, mais une pitoyable caricature. Un Jésus qui approuve tout est un Jésus sans Croix, car alors il n'y a plus besoin de la douleur de la Croix pour guérir l'homme... Le pardon a quelque chose à voir avec la Verité et pour cela il exige la Croix du Fils de notre conversion. »

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. Extrait d'une retraite prêchée en 1986.

[homeosloven]

wait wait why was the ex pope bad. i’m not into christianity so i have no clue are people celebrating his death just bc he was a priest in power or did he do some shit

being a catholic already makes you a bad person, if you're a catholic priest you're worse, a bishop is worse than a priest, an archbishop is worse than a bishop, a cardinal is way worse than an archbishop and in the end of course there's the main bitch of them all, His Holiness the Pope, arguably the worst catholic on earth. Now, Mr Ratzinger here was a religious fundamentalist, opposed any and all attempts at modernizing the Church, he fought hard against anti-aids/anti-hiv campaigns that promoted safe sex/contraception (because the virus is god's punishment for promiscuity and homosexuality), he was militantly against same sex marriage and used all institutional and lobbying power in his hand to stop progressive legislation around the world, but mainly in Italy, where the Vatican is most welcome in governmental palaces.

His biggest scandals were by far the cover-up of various child abuses by priests, cardinals, bishops etc all over the world (most notably in Germany and the US). All this obviously accompanied by corruption, financial speculation, bribing of national officials around Europe etc. He was the staunch conservator of a rotting institution, and he did everything in his power to move it and everyone around it back to the middle ages.

[tinyshe]

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI - Biography 

The late Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, was born in Marktl, Germany, on 16 April 1927. At an early age, he discovered the beauty and truth of faith in Christ through his family’s spiritual heritage and their clear witness of goodness and hope, rooted in committed attachment to the Church. On 19 April 2005, he was elected as the 265th Pope, choosing the name “Benedict XVI”. 

DOD 2022.12.31

[fear-not-beloved]

To have Christian hope means to know about evil and yet to go to meet the future with confidence. The core of faith rests upon accepting being loved by God, and therefore to believe is to say Yes, not only to him, but to creation, to creatures, above all, to men, to try to see the image of God in each person and thereby to become a lover. That's not easy, but the basic Yes, the conviction that God has created men, that he stands behind them, that they aren't simply negative, gives love a reference point that enables it to ground hope on the basis of faith. ― Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger/Pope Benedict