Vatican.- Benedict XVI, the theologian pope guardian of the faith

Resigned in 2013

On February 28, 2013, amid shouts of ‘Long live the Pope’ and applause, after 2,872 days, two hours and 10 minutes, intense to the last, Benedict XVI’s pontificate came to an end after announcing his resignation a few weeks earlier for lack of strength and for the good of the Church.

First Pope to resign

He then became the first pope to resign in 700 years. «I am not abandoning the cross,» he specified in his last audience, although days earlier he had indicated that he would remain «hidden from the world.»

Pope Emeritus

Deceased at the age of 95, he ultimately spent more time as emeritus than as an active pontiff.

Born in Marktl, Germany

Joseph Ratzinger (1927, Marktl, Germany) was ordained a priest in 1951 and in 1977 was appointed archbishop of Munich and created a cardinal by Paul VI.

Elected Pope in 2005

On April 19, 2005 at 5:50 p.m. he was elected Pope. At that moment, white smoke began to rise from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel and a few minutes later, the ringing of bells began in Rome.

Successor of John Paul II

He had been elected the successor of John Paul II in the fourth scrutiny, on the second day of the Conclave.

«Habemus Papam»

About an hour later, Chilean Cardinal Jorge Arturo Medina Estévez pronounced the expected words ‘Habemus Papam’ and Joseph Ratzinger stepped out onto the balcony.

Eight years of Pontificate

As he indicated in his last general audience, in which he was surrounded by some 150,000 faithful and about 70 cardinals, the boat of St. Peter, that is, the Church, passed during his eight years of Pontificate through days of light in which the waters were calm, such as the World Youth Days in Cologne and Madrid.

Turbulent Moments

But it also had other moments in which the boat had to cross rough waters, such as the ‘Vatileaks’ case or the fight against sexual abuse.

Document leakage

Specifically, the scandal of the leak of confidential documents, which ended with Benedict XVI granting a pardon to his former butler, Paolo Gabriele, was the last trip through troubled waters in which the Pontiff had to navigate, a case that began when private documents of the Pope were published and for which the Vatican opened a criminal investigation on March 16, 2012.

Benedict xvi official visit to germany

The Vatican police arrested the Pope’s former butler, Paolo Gabriele, who was put on trial by the Vatican tribunal and found guilty of the crime of aggravated robbery, which ended with his imprisonment in a cell in the Vatican gendarmerie barracks.

Against sexual abuse

Even before he was elected pope, Ratzinger had to assume a difficult role as prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, at the head of which John Paul II placed him, in the fight against cases of sexual abuse by members of the clergy that were beginning to emerge in countries such as Ireland and the United States.

He asked for forgiveness for the abuses

During his Pontificate, Benedict XVI met with the victims of abuse to whom he asked forgiveness and also in May 2011 sent, through the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal William Levada, a circular letter on how to deal with these cases to all the Bishops’ Conferences of the world, which in turn had to draw up guidelines for action.

Cooperate with the authorities

In this document, the bishops were told of the need to «cooperate» with civil authorities and to «refer to the authorities crimes» of sexual abuse committed by clergy, religious or lay personnel.

Listening to victims

It also indicated that they must be «willing to listen to the victims and their families» and that the bishop has the obligation to refer the case to the Vatican Congregation.

Accused of concealment

However, in 2022 he was accused of cover-up in a sexual abuse case when he was archbishop of Munich and Freising between 1977 and 1982 and was due to testify in a trial to defend himself against these accusations.

World Youth Days

In his eight years of Pontificate, the boat of St. Peter, driven by Benedict XVI, also found, as the Pope Emeritus said in his last audience, days of «abundant fishing» among which can be counted the World Youth Days. In fact, the first of his 24 trips outside Italy was the one he made to his homeland, Germany, on the occasion of WYD in Cologne in 2005.

JMJ Madrid 2011

However, the one that remains closest in everyone’s memory is the WYD that was held in August 2011 in Madrid, in which nearly two million young people participated.

Messages to young people

On that occasion, Benedict XVI sent messages that are still relevant today, such as the one he sent to young people who are looking for a decent job or the message of responsibility in the face of the economic crisis. In addition, he resisted the heavy rain and wind with the young people at the Vigil of Cuatro Vientos, where he launched a spontaneous: ‘You are stronger than the rain!

Spain, a frequent destination

Precisely, Spain was the destination of two more of his visits, one to Valencia in 2006, on the occasion of the V World Meeting of Families, a trip that was overshadowed by a fatal Metro accident, in which 43 people died, which was the reason for Benedict XVI to alter his agenda to pray for the victims in the accident station and meet with their families.

Compostelan Holy Year

In addition, in 2010, he visited Santiago de Compostela where he officiated a Holy Mass on the occasion of the Compostelan Holy Year and Barcelona, where he presided over another Eucharist for the dedication of the Sagrada Familia.

Mexico and Cuba

One of his last apostolic trips was to Mexico and Cuba from March 23-29, 2012, where he left messages in favor of change and freedom, against the embargo in Cuba and against drug trafficking and violence in Mexico.

Special Assembly for the Middle East

Likewise, in his last trip to Lebanon, on the occasion of the signing and publication of the Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation of the Special Assembly for the Middle East, he took the opportunity to urge the cessation of arms exports to Syria and to call for peace in the Middle East.

Encyclicals

Although if anything marked his time in the Petrine ministry, in addition to the novelty of his resignation, it was his encyclicals. When experts thought that the entire Second Vatican Council had been squeezed into the texts of John Paul II, Benedict XVI surprised in 2005 with ‘Deus Caritas est’, in which he delves into the love of God; in 2007, with ‘Spe salvi’, on the idea of hope in eternal life and in 2009 with ‘Caritas in Veritate’, in which he addresses the issues of the development of peoples and social inequalities in the context of the beginning of the economic crisis.

Great theologian

Thus, although he went from cardinal to pope and from pope to Roman pontiff emeritus, he never ceased to be a great theologian.

Ended limbo

In addition to these texts, the approval in January 2007 of the document of the Vatican’s International Theological Commission (ITC) ruling out the possibility of a limbo after death, which means that children who die without baptism go directly to heaven.

No animals in the manger

In the last book of his trilogy on Jesus of Nazareth, entitled ‘The Childhood of Jesus’, he assured that there were no animals by the manger, unlike what is reflected in the traditional critical iconography, in which Mary and Joseph are presented, together with the Child Jesus, surrounded by an ox and a mule in the manger.

He condemned the spread of faith through violence.

Benedict XVI was also embroiled in controversy for his speech at the University of Regensburg in 2006 in which he condemned the «irrationality» of «spreading the faith through violence» as occurs in Islam’s ‘Jihad’ (holy war).

Quoting a medieval text

As he later explained, he was quoting a medieval text of a 14th century Byzantine emperor and not expressing his personal opinion, while regretting the reactions of some countries.