Who Is Benedict XVI?

Benedict XVI: Theologian, Pope, and Devotee of Mary

Among the Successors of Saint Peter, the Church has also had Joseph Ratzinger.

A well-known and highly regarded German theologian, who took part as theological expert of the Cardinal Archbishop of Cologne, Joseph Frings, in the Second Vatican Council convoked by Saint John XXIII.

• Called by Pope Paul VI to be Archbishop of Munich and Cardinal.
• Appointed by Pope John Paul II as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, until 2005.
• Upon the death of Pope John Paul II, he was elected Roman Pontiff on April 19, 2005.

After the towering figure of John Paul II, who went around the world 29 times on apostolic journeys, uniting the proclamation of Christ with the expression of a profound spiritual relationship with the Mother of Christ (Totus tuus), people looked with some apprehension and curiosity at the figure of the new Pope to find out what his witness concerning Mary would be, in life and in theology.

Ratzinger’s Theology

Joseph Ratzinger concentrates his theology on the most important themes of Christianity. Among his writings, the one considered until now to be one of the most important is Introduction to Christianity (1969), in which he treats the great themes of the Apostles’ Creed. Next, it is worth mentioning the volume Dogma and Preaching (1973), an anthology of essays, homilies, and reflections devoted above all to pastoral ministry.

The address that Joseph Ratzinger delivered at the Bavarian Academy on the theme Why I Am Still in the Church had a great impact; in it, with his customary clarity, he affirmed that it is possible to be a Christian only in the Church and not on its margins. The Bavarian theologian published a great deal over the years:

In 1985, he published the book-length interview The Ratzinger Report.

In 1996, Salt of the Earth.

In 2010, Light of the World.

Finally, after his renunciation of the office of Bishop of Rome, he offered the Church his last meditations, published in September 2016, with a very significant title: Last Testament, in which he explains, among other things, the reasons for his historic decision.

One of the questions that occupies a particular place in Ratzinger’s theology is the relationship between truth and reason, between faith and science. These themes were already very topical during the pontificate of John Paul II, to whom Ratzinger is closely linked as executor and inspirer.

It should also be noted that Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, on behalf of John Paul II, was the one who directed the publication of a complex document of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, The Message of Fatima. He wrote the demanding theological commentary with the aim of shedding light on the thorny question of the third secret.

Indeed, in the Theological Commentary of Cardinal Ratzinger, then Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the theological criteria for attempting an interpretation of the symbolic language typical of the third part of the so-called secret of Fatima are identified and specified. The clear distinction between public revelation, proper to Sacred Scripture, and private revelations, to which the message of Fatima also belongs, leads one not to overload a theological and ecclesial prophecy that is difficult to interpret and does not bind the faith of the believer.

The Theology of Benedict XVI

As Bishop of Rome, Benedict XVI published three important encyclical letters:

Deus caritas est, of December 25, 2005, on the nature and importance of God’s love.

Spe Salvi, of November 30, 2007, on the source of Christian hope, which is faith.

Caritas in veritate, of June 29, 2009, on love as an act of freedom and on truth as the necessary condition for love.

We must also recall the 4 apostolic exhortations, all connected with the celebration of a Synod of Bishops:

Sacramentum caritatis, of February 22, 2007, on the Eucharist as the culminating point of the life of the Church.

Verbum Domini, of September 30, 2010, on the Bible as the Word of God read and interpreted within the tradition of the Church.

Africae munus, of November 19, 2011, on the role of the Church in promoting peace and justice, that is, the common good, on the African continent.

Ecclesia in Medio Oriente, of September 14, 2012, on the Communion and Witness that the Church has offered in so plural an environment since the dawn of Christianity.

We must also mention his three volumes on Jesus of Nazareth, because they have drawn the attention not only of the faithful but also of scholars, owing to their inherent capacity to present the mystery, the reality, and the Gospel message of the Nazarene.

Despite everything, he never ceased to exhort the whole Church to rediscover the beauty and the commitment of Christianity in the contemporary world, and to become ever more true disciples of Christ and co-workers of the Truth.

According to Benedict XVI, one should speak of Mary with sobriety. Exaggeration, intemperance of speech, can only devalue what one would like to exalt. The Pope advises us to mortify our chatter before the mystery of God, because depth pays the price for it. Sobriety does not exclude warmth. Sobriety is never dryness or coldness. Spouses or friends do not need words to tell each other that they love each other and are happy to be together.

The silence of love is marvelous praise, for to praise someone is to let him know that he is worthy of being loved. For this, a simple glance is more eloquent than a multitude of words. Warmth and sobriety: here lies the whole of Benedict XVI’s profound devotion.

In the next episode we will deal with Ratzinger’s Mariological Conversion.

To explore Benedict XVI’s Marian theology more deeply, consult the encyclical Redemptoris Mater of John Paul II, a document on Mary in the life of the Church that Ratzinger deeply admired.

Deepen your studies: explore Mariology, Marian Theology, Marian apparitions, and the Postgraduate Program in Mariology.