(I picked up the link for the article from Morning Catholic must-reads which is a regular round-up written by Luke Coppen, Editor of the Catholic Herald. His blog Editor's Briefing is well worth following.)
Tuesday, 23 March 2010
Balanced article on Pope Benedict
(I picked up the link for the article from Morning Catholic must-reads which is a regular round-up written by Luke Coppen, Editor of the Catholic Herald. His blog Editor's Briefing is well worth following.)
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7 comments:
The assertion (more than likely a sub-editor's) that Benedict XVI is the "most controversial pontiff in history" is somewhat hyperbolic.
What a splendid article : someone who knows his job, and has done his homework. Deo Gratias !
Yes, I read it this morning and tweeted it as a "not unsympathetic, but distanced, Guardian's-eye view". Certainly it is a better outsider's approach than the rather hysterical pieces in The Times recently.
by Guardian standards, this might be balanced, but otherwise, it is just the usual liberal stereotypes.
It's good to see a balanced article on the Pope, free from the hysteria that appears to have infested some publications and bloggers.
Besides which, somebody who is unafraid to offend people is a good'un in my books. And I liked the bit about the cats.
I rather liked the letter written by Cardinal Pell in today's The Australian.
JARay
The Guardian article was very surprising indeed, and it is testimony to a surprising man. Personally, I still do not know quite what to make of him, but I remember the moment when I first came across his 2003 speech to the Pontifical Biblical Commission on the occasion of their centenary, when he discussed the relationship between the Magisterium and exegetes.
Here, I think you will see a wonderful balance between the radical Ratzinger of Vatican II and - much later - the more conservative man who was soon to become the Holy Father.
I have to admit, as a reflective critic of the traditionalist wing of the Church, and an unashamed returner from the Catholic Church to the Anglican fold, that I nevertheless believe that the jury is out on Benedict XVI. Popes mature with age and with the the guidance of the Holy Spirit, who always does surprising things. Look at John XXIII and what happened there! (Whoops... sorry, bad example for this blog.)
There are many in the Anglican communion who appreciate Benedict very much, as I have discovered on my return to this curious fold, and that is very interesting. So perhaps it is not entirely surprising that (even) the Guardian can publish an appreciative article like this. It is not so much testimony to the honesty of the journalist, although that is praiseworthy, but more to the honest appeal of his subject.
Personally, like many, I discovered a more balanced approach by discovering Benedict's own words, and I re-read that speech to the Pontifical Biblical Commission many times. I looked at it again yesterday. The whole 20th century is in there, and in a sense, you can see how that century influenced him as a man; and that prepared him to see the way that - as Pope - he understands God is guiding us.
www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/pcb_documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20030510_ratzinger-comm-bible_en.html
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