Papal apartment and family

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NewPerspective		#821	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 15 06/18/08 11:45:49	Benodette, you wrote: "Sandro Magister is not infallible - he can be wrong too. Those apartments are large - big enough for 20,000 books, a study, a dining room, a sitting room, a kitchen, and space for Georg Ratzinger on his visits to Rome. That does not fit into 300 sq metres." From what I have read of Cardinal Ratzinger's apartment, he had books everywhere - all of the walls were lined with bookshelves. That, however, does not mean that he had a 3,000 square foot apartment. That would be an entire floor in that building. Each floor has 2 apartments, I believe. And it's so ill-constructed inside that the others who lived there could here Cardinal Ratzinger playing his piano. Among those who live in Cardinal Ratzinger's apartment building are: Cardinal Darío Castrillón Hoyos, Cardinal Pio Laghi, Cardinal Walter Kasper, Cardinal Virgilio Noe (Tarcisio Bertone used to live there; Cardinal Hummes lives in the building now). There is also a Sister Yvonne Mary Loucks, R.S.M., Piazza della Citta Leonina, 1, who is in charge of the efforts for beatification for Ven. Catherine McAuley. According to an article written April 25, 2005, for Der Spiegel, Cardinal Ratzinger was said to live in apartment no. 8.
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NewPerspective		#822	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 16 06/18/08 12:06:11	By the way, Benodette, 300 square meters is 3,000 square feet. That's the size of very large house. Those Citta della Leonina apartments are spacious, but not that spacious. Cardinal Ratzinger's books took over his house. I don't know how many bedrooms there were, but there were at least two: for Cardinal Ratzinger and his sister, Maria. I don't know what he did with her bedroom after her death, but I'd be surprised if he turned it over to Ingrid Stampa. Besides sounding creepy, I don't think he'd relativize his sister's place in his life like that. Another point: Joseph Ratzinger seems to be pretty clear on the differences between employers and employees. Although he did play board games with his housekeeper in Munich (and played duets with Miss Stampa), I think he's been consistent in drawing a line between his employees and his private life. I'll repeat what I've said before: if Miss Stampa was as much of an influence in his life as some of those early reports said she was, he would have kept her as part of the pontifical family. And he didn't.
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Benodette	My cousin the Pontiff: Pope Benedict XVI	#823	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 5650 07/12/08 16:18:46	Herald Sun - To a billion Catholics throughout the world, he is the Holy Father, the Pope, Benedict XVI. But to one Melbourne grandmother, he will always be Joseph. The Pontiff's cousin, Erika Kopp, 83, said her famous relative had been a shy, clever and studious boy. She had known the Pope since they were childhood playmates in Germany and said she was excited about his first visit to Australia. "Coming to Australia is good for the Church," she said at her home in Blackburn South... The Pope is Ms Kopp's first cousin. Her father, Benno Riege, was the brother of the Pope's mother, Maria. She spent most of her childhood holidays with his family in a small village in Bavaria. "Nobody else in the family wanted to visit them because they were so religious," she said. "He was a shy boy, very clever, studying all the time. He plays the piano beautifully." Ms Kopp said she had not tried to contact the Pope and did not expect to speak to him while he was in Australia. "We don't want to be pushy. He is the Pope to a billion Catholics, she said. "I wouldn't bother him. I wouldn't know what to call him. My cousin the Pontiff: Pope Benedict XVI
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Benodette	Benedict XVI's family ties to Australia	#824	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 5658 07/13/08 17:08:31	From John Allen - One Australian woman is watching Pope Benedict XVI's arrival in Australia with special interest this week: 83-year-old Erika Kopp of Melbourne is first cousin to the pontiff, and says that while others may address him as "Holy Father" or "Your Holiness," to her he will always be "Joseph." The pope's given name is Joseph Ratzinger. Kopp was interviewed by Australia's Sunday Herald Sun from her home in Melbourne. Kopp's father, Benno Riege, was the brother of the pope's mother, Maria. Kopp said that she and the future pope were childhood playmates growing up in Bavaria, when the Riege and Ratzinger families frequently spent holidays together. Benedict XVI's family ties to Australia
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Benodette	A Birthday in the Household	#825	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 5737 07/30/08 10:54:06	© Benodette Today is Georg Ganswein's birthday. He is 52. This article appeared during the Australian trip. The writers were so stunned by his looks that they failed to identify him. He said to be on "the right" of the Pope in this picture. Sydney Telegraph Sydney Telegraph - The Pope's private secretary may have committed himself to God but his dashing looks have sent hearts fluttering the world over, earning him the nickname "Gorgeous Georg." Monsignor Georg Gaenswein, 51, who is known as the George Clooney or Hugh Grant of the Catholic Church, this week shadowed the Pope during every step of his Sydney visit. Most of the pictures show a smiling or reflective Monsignor Gaenswein with the Pope while others show him in action on the tennis court. Last night he sat discretely in a lowered chair facing the Pope in the Popemobile as it streaked through Sydney streets. The first time he rode with the Pope, the Guardian newspaper, which called him "rather dishy", quoted a German magazine which said: "As he jumped on the Popemobile for the first time, we women held our breath." Paparazzi have developed a fascination with him, following him on holidays, photographing him on the tennis court and ski slopes while in his private time "Gorgeous Georg" flies a plane. Time this year labelled his good looks as "scene stealing" and that he was "the priest with the film star looks" while Donatella Versace dedicated a collection to the robe wearing priest. Meet 'Gorgeous Georg', the Pope's main man Last Edited By: Benodette 07/30/08 11:08:40. Edited 1 time.
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Benodette	Holy smoke, a scandal	#826	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 5738 07/30/08 11:29:35	Supposedly from the Pope's Australian bodyguards, rumours that he smokes the occasional cigarette. The Australian -IN Victorian times, the good and great maintained that a gentleman had no secrets from his valet, and in today's fishbowl world the same obviously applies to the exalted and their bodyguards Benedict XVI has been joined at the hip with a rotating squad of Australian bodyguards since he first set foot on our soil in Darwin last week. Even when he was relaxing at the Opus Dei retreat at Kenthurst in Sydney's northwest before the official World Youth Day program began, the beady-eyed minders were never far from his side. Strewth is reliably informed (no names, no pack drill) that in his most private moments Joseph Ratzinger is as weakly human as the rest of us. Away from the crowds and the cameras, the Pope is partial to puffing the odd durry or two. Holy smoke, a scandal
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mag6nideum		#827	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 1467 07/30/08 14:26:37	The Pope sneaking off for a few puffs behind a wattle tree? Sexy Don Georg diligently keeping watch? Hmmm.... seems the Vatican is starting to rock.
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galantarie		#828	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 4489 07/31/08 07:08:48 Member	QUOTE: "Away from the crowds and the cameras, the Pope is partial to puffing the odd durry or two." We discussed this at the beginning of the Papacy: This is TOTALLY UNCONFIRMED and UNTRUE GOSSIP! Papa never smoked.... "I have a mustard- seed; and I am not afraid to use it." [Ratzinger:"Salt of the Earth"] May Our Papa's radiant-light continuously shine forth to illuminate Christ for the world!
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Benodette	The Pope and Smoking	#829	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 5743 07/31/08 11:29:04	Galanterie this new rumour comes from his Australian bodyguards. How do you know if Joseph Ratzinger ever smoked or not? Why does it matter? If he wants to smoke, that's up to him. It wouldn't be wise - given his medical history and that persistent cough - but it's his decision. I dislike smoking and prefer not to be around smokers. I would prefer to think the Pope does not smoke - but if he did I would just have to accept it. Just as I have to accept that he wears fur and eats baby cow when I would rather he did not.
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NewPerspective	Papa and Smoking	#830	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 27 08/05/08 05:49:25	People have known that Joseph Ratzinger smoked for years. He is said to have started when he moved to Rome to head the CDF. I really don't see what the problem is - Pius X smoked, Pius XI smoked, John XXIII smoked (I think Leo XIII smoked and also hunted birds, with a rifle). It's not the worst thing in the world.
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rcesq	Smoking	#831	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 1696 08/05/08 17:55:31 Moderator	It's not the worst thing in the world. No. But it is pretty stupid and reckless if you're trying to keep up your health.
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AspirantMonk		#832	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 25 08/05/08 20:46:45	The Holy Father smokes? , are you kidding? Not that I'm dissappointed or anything, but it's just shocking. I honestly can't picture His Holiness Benedict XVI puffing on a cigarette. John XXIII and Leo XIII? Sure, but not Papa Ratzinger! Oh well, I guess it just goes to show that our exalted Pontiff is just a normal guy like the rest of us. Who knows, perhaps when I'm Pope they'll discover some things I would not be to keen to reveal to the public too! Last Edited By: AspirantMonk 08/05/08 20:49:04. Edited 1 time.
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Unicorn	Holy Smokes?	#833	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 1390 08/06/08 01:15:01	But it is pretty stupid and reckless if you're trying to keep up your health. Indeed it is, Rcesq. And somehow, Joseph Ratzinger does not strike me as a stupid or reckless person. I'm inclined to take this "news" report with a huge grain of salt. In all the hundred of news articles and "human interest" stories that appeared since he was elected Pope, none ever said that he smoked. Neither Peter Seewald nor Vittorio Messori, who spent a considerable length of time with the then Cardinal Ratzinger when they were interviewing him for "Salt of the Earth", "God and the World" and "The Ratzinger Report" ever mentioned that the Cardinal lit up during the course of their long conversations, or after the meals they shared. John Allen has never mentioned such a "habit", nor did David Gibson. News reports aside, what we know about the Pope's health, both before and after his election, is weighty evidence for the very real possibility that he doesn't smoke. It is known -- and Seewald himself has said this -- that Joseph Ratzinger takes maintenance medication for hypertension. It is also known that he had a minor stroke in 1991, barely two years after he arrived in Rome. Both make it absolutely imperative that he avoid smoking. For someone who has suffered a stroke and has issues with hypertension, smoking -- whether it be one pack or one stick -- is an absolute no-no. And to be honest, Joseph Ratzinger strikes me as the kind of person who would not be foolhardy enough to "tempt the fates" in such an irresponsible manner. Of course, if he does smoke, I would be a tad disappointed, as I absolutely do not like smoking. But he would still be my "l'amato Papa" all the same. Proud to be Papist! "Each of us is the result of a thought of God. Each of us is willed, each of us is loved ..." - Benedict XVI "He knocks at the door, he is close to us and thus true joy is close, which is stronger than all the sorrows in the world, and in our life." - Benedict XVI
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PaxTibi	Smoker? Not likely ....	#834	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 143 08/06/08 08:01:15	Perhaps the Holy Father enjoys having the odd cigarette every now and again but, I think, based purely on circumstantial evidence, that it is unlikely that he is a fully fledged smoker. Yes, there have been reports, once in a blue moon, about him smoking but you really see very little to suggest that it's a habit of his. If he were a smoker, there would surely be more than one or two photographs of him smoking a cigarette as a cardinal. Besides, has anyone who has kissed the Papal ring ever commented that they could smell tobacco on his hands or on his clothes? I think its something that many people would have noticed and have commented on by now. I have certainly never seen any comments to that effect. "The truest beauty is the love of God, who definitively revealed himself to us in the paschal mystery." Sacramentum Caritatis, 35 "We become witnesses when, through our actions, words and way of being, Another makes himself present." Sacramentum Caritatis, 85
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mag6nideum		#835	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 1470 08/06/08 11:47:50	I agree with Pax. The Holy Father may have a very occasional puff or two, but that's it. He is IMHO not a habitual smoker and I say this because I've observed that for someone his age he manages rather long phrases of chant without gasping for breath all the time the way a real smoker or a heavy smoker is obliged to do.
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Unicorn		#836	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 1392 08/06/08 21:56:28	It is very good to see you both here more often, Pax and Mag6. Besides, has anyone who has kissed the Papal ring ever commented that they could smell tobacco on his hands or on his clothes? I think its something that many people would have noticed and have commented on by now. I have certainly never seen any comments to that effect. I had that chance in May last year, Pax, and believe me, I didn't smell a thing -- and I am very, very sensitive to the smell of tobacco, because I grew up in a home where no one smoked; my office is also a "No-Smoking" zone, and I hardly ever go to clubs and places where there are many smokers. Even if a person has only smoked one cigarette, I am able to detect the smell of cigarette smoke "hovering" around that person. I remember so well that warm, firm handclasp, the gentle voice murmuring a Latin blessing for my mother, the enormous gold Fisherman's Ring, the expanse of white cassock and the delightful red saturno, and yes, the unforgettable eyes -- but there was definitely not the slightest hit of tobacco smoke. Anyone who looks at Il Papa's hands will also notice that his fingers do not have nicotine stains, something that would be evident if he had been a habitual smoker. This photo of Il Papa signing the Guestbook at the Admiralty House in Sydney shows his hands quite clearly, and his fingertips certainly look very pink and healthy -- not a single nicotine stain to be seen. (AP Photo) Mag6 is also quite correct in her observation -- there's no way Il Papa would be able to chant rather long phrases in the Liturgy, if he were a smoker. Proud to be Papist! "Each of us is the result of a thought of God. Each of us is willed, each of us is loved ..." - Benedict XVI "He knocks at the door, he is close to us and thus true joy is close, which is stronger than all the sorrows in the world, and in our life." - Benedict XVI Last Edited By: Unicorn 08/06/08 22:47:07. Edited 3 times.
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Benodette	Holy Smokes?	#837	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 5769 08/07/08 11:33:46	I tend to agree with the "non-smoker" camp here, although it is possible that Joseph Ratzinger has had the odd puff in his time. When he first became an academic I don't think smokers were quite the pariahs they are today. People closer to his age tell me the when they were young smoking was quite cool. Who could blame him if he occasionally lit up during the turbulent years in Tubingen? In any case, I don't think he could be a heavy smoker. If he were his snowy hair would show some signs of it and there would be a faint whiff of tobacco. There is no discernable smell of nicotine around him. Of course, he could avoid smoking before a public appearance. There were two Australian stories about him smoking. The second - which I did not post - claimed the guards said he wanted to go into the courtyard and that he would quickly smoke three cigarettes in a row. That doesn't seem very likely. A smoker that desperate would surely show some signs of the weed on his person.
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mag6nideum		#838	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 1474 08/07/08 14:13:28	Benodette wrote: "There were two Australian stories about him smoking. The second - which I did not post - claimed the guards said he wanted to go into the courtyard and that he would quickly smoke three cigarettes in a row. That doesn't seem very likely. A smoker that desperate would surely show some signs of the weed on his person." I agree. Smoking three "dry" cigarettes in a row (without some coffee or tea) seems highly unlikely. Almost impossible actually. I know because I've been a smoker and actually still haven't quite kicked the terrible habit. (Don't worry, I won't come near you guys!! And anyhow, I smoke outside, when I do, and my home smells of roses.) If this really happened, the Pope must have been in a state of high stress and tension, but even so, three dry ones.....no! I don't believe it. Except, I have a friend who suffered from chronic bronchitis and asthma when she was younger and her doctor prescribed eucalyptus cigarettes! Sounds crazy to me, but she had to smoke those things when she felt clogged or whatever. And the Pope is supposed to suffer from a form of chronic bronchitis, if one can trust the media in this respect. ( I'm just looking for an excuse for him. I don't want him to smoke and I don't believe he does!) Yes, smoking was supposed to be cool some decades ago; and it creates the illusion of lowering one's nervous tension. But I doubt that the Pope would have started smoking in his Tuebingen years. Remember the famous photograph where he sits between Karl Rahner and someone else. Rahner seems to be smoking like a chimney, but Ratzinger has no cigarette either in his hands (which are folded, if I recall correctly) or in an ash tray in front of him. Another thing: I've read that the Vatican is now a smoke free zone. No one is allowed to smoke indoors. Will the Pope have to slip outside for his alleged puffs? I can't quite see this happening. PS: I've never seen so many cigarette butts on pavements and streets as in Rome. It is actually shocking. Perhaps Cardinal Ratzinger - for a short time - thought to himself: "If I can't beat them, I'll join them." Last Edited By: mag6nideum 08/07/08 14:23:13. Edited 1 time.
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NewPerspective		#839	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 28 08/11/08 10:37:36	I'm amazed. You people all "know" that Joseph Ratzinger doesn't smoke. And someone even reproduced a photo of his hands! Wow. You guys all seem to make up your own reality. Why should we doubt the Australian guards who saw Benedict smoking 3 cigarettes in a row? He was nicotine-deprived and probably was facing a dinner or something where he couldn't smoke. Early on, there were reports that he smoked Marlboro Reds or Golds. And, of course, he wouldn't want to be photographed smoking (just as the Queen of England smokes, but is never photographed with a cigarette in her hands). Again, what is the big deal? So he smokes. So what?
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Benodette	Smoking and Aggression	#840	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 5787 08/11/08 12:08:28	The Queen of England does not smoke. Her sister Margaret did and suffered a rapid decline in health at a relatively young age. Her father, King Georg VI, was also a heavy smoker and died of lung cancer at the age of 56. Why, New Perspective, do your posts have to be so aggressive? One can almost hear you spitting the words out. You would find a perfectly open welcome here if you were to be a little more polite.
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