What should Christianity look like? Not like the Roman Catholic Church as it has developed under Pope Francis. In a Posthumous book, which was only to be released after his death, Pope Benedict has launched a vehement attack on the state of the Roman Catholic Church, especially in the West.
Last week (Jan 18) Mondadori, the Italian Publishers of Pope Benedict have released Che cos’e il Cristianesimo (What is Christianity?), a collection of essays written by Joseph Ratzinger. These were mostly written between 2018 and 2022. The late Pope joins Cardinal Pell who last week also spoke from the grave, and was revealed to be the mysterious author of a blog which severy criticized the state and direction of the Church under this present papacy.
In a letter which accompanied the request for the publication of these texts only after his death, Benedict XVI stated that he no longer wanted to divulge anything in life due to the opposition he suffered in his own country. “The fury of the groups in Germany who are against me is so strong that the appearance of any word from me immediately provokes a murderous outcry.” He reiterates the fact that at many Roman Catholic seminaries (so called) students read his books in secret because the theologians hate the views of their own pope and cancel these and any who dare to believe the same.
Ratzinger furthermore states that there has been a “vast collapse” in priestly formation, with pornography prevailing amongst clergy and the religious orders, while practicing homosexuals operate in seminaries and influence the Church: “In various seminaries homosexual clubs were formed which acted more or less openly and which clearly transformed the atmosphere in the seminaries.” Ratzinger also warns against the kind of dialogue with other religions as practiced under Pope Francis and calls the church back to Holy Scripture and it exclusive claims. Many of these claims are not so much new, but confirm what others, this blog included, have been saying for many years now. Otherwise he continues to condemn protestant Christians like Luther (who was praised by Pope Francis), to view the priesthood as an exclusively celibate profession despite the fact that most of the apostles who instituted the ministry of the priesthood were married men.
Ratzinger’s posthumous book coincides with the publication of his secretary Gänswein’s “Nothing but the truth” about his life with Pope Benedict, which discusses many of the issues associated with the Francis Papacy.