Hey! My feelings weren't hurt, no probs. It's just that Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI) is an extremely learned man. Not only that, but he was also a key advisor to Pope John Paul! So although we may never have another Pope like John Paul, don't forget who advised him during his reign!
"As Pope John Paul II's chief doctrinal officer and key advisor, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger was the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith from 1981 to 2005.
He is the most revered prelate, scholar, theologian, teacher and Catholic author of our time, under Pope John Paul II - having spoken on everything from sexual consumerism, private revelation and the "crisis of faith," to human rights, roles of men and women today, marriage, the priesthood, and the future of the world".
" Ratzinger worked more closely with Pope John Paul II than perhaps anyone else. On Tuesdays, Ratzinger and members of the Congregation would meet with the Pope for an hour-and-a-half lunch meeting. Then Ratzinger would meet alone with the late Pope every Friday evening to discuss critical problems facing the Church and the deliberations of the Congregation. "Then the Pope decides," Ratzinger said about those meetings."
And regarding that old chestnut 'The Pope is a former Nazi' ....
"...in 1939, entered the minor seminary in Traunstein. In 1943 while still in seminary, he was drafted at age 16 into the German anti-aircraft corps. (Though he was opposed to the Nazis, he was forced to join at a young age.) Ratzinger then trained in the German infantry, but a subsequent illness precluded him from the usual rigors of military duty. As the Allied front drew closer to his post in 1945, he escaped from the Nazis and returned to his family's home .... Family and Church were, for him, inseparable - and he clearly saw Hitler and the Third Reich as the enemy to both. He has said of his father, "…He saw that a victory of Hitler would not be a victory for Germany but a victory of the Antichrist…". "
Hey! My feelings weren't hurt, no probs. It's just that Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI) is an extremely learned man. Not only that, but he was also a key advisor to Pope John Paul! So although we may never have another Pope like John Paul, don't forget who advised him during his reign!
"As Pope John Paul II's chief doctrinal officer and key advisor, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger was the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith from 1981 to 2005.
He is the most revered prelate, scholar, theologian, teacher and Catholic author of our time, under Pope John Paul II - having spoken on everything from sexual consumerism, private revelation and the "crisis of faith," to human rights, roles of men and women today, marriage, the priesthood, and the future of the world".
" Ratzinger worked more closely with Pope John Paul II than perhaps anyone else. On Tuesdays, Ratzinger and members of the Congregation would meet with the Pope for an hour-and-a-half lunch meeting. Then Ratzinger would meet alone with the late Pope every Friday evening to discuss critical problems facing the Church and the deliberations of the Congregation. "Then the Pope decides," Ratzinger said about those meetings."
And regarding that old chestnut 'The Pope is a former Nazi' ....
"...in 1939, entered the minor seminary in Traunstein. In 1943 while still in seminary, he was drafted at age 16 into the German anti-aircraft corps. (Though he was opposed to the Nazis, he was forced to join at a young age.) Ratzinger then trained in the German infantry, but a subsequent illness precluded him from the usual rigors of military duty. As the Allied front drew closer to his post in 1945, he escaped from the Nazis and returned to his family's home .... Family and Church were, for him, inseparable - and he clearly saw Hitler and the Third Reich as the enemy to both. He has said of his father, "…He saw that a victory of Hitler would not be a victory for Germany but a victory of the Antichrist…". "
The above is an extract from: http://www.ignatiusinsight.com/authors/cardinalratzinger.asp