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Welcome to The Pope Benedict XVI Forum
The Pope Benedict XVI Fan Club invites your participation in our open, yet civil and (hopefully) respectful discussion of topics by and about Pope Benedict XVI and general issues in Catholic faith & theology. Members, please acquaint yourself with our FORUM RULES -- failure to abide by the rules will result in warnings from the moderator and possible expulsion by the management.
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 Benodette |
Anecdotal and light stories about Joseph Ratzinger/Pope Benedict |
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Posts: 8228 12/06/05 12:21:12 |
This thread is intended to be a place where we can find anecdotal and human interest stories about Joseph Ratzinger as Cardinal and Pope.
This is an example: Can a Shy Theologian Transform into a Pope for the People? service.spiegel.de/cache/...16,00.html
Last Edited By: Benodette 05/29/08 02:29:16.
Edited 1 time.
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Benodette |
Love of Bavarian food, culture sustains pope's friendship wi | #1 | ||
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Posts: 8228 12/06/05 23:18:12 |
Love of Bavarian food, culture sustains pope's friendship with banker
The 27-year friendship between Pope Benedict XVI and a German banker was sustained through a mutual love of Bavarian food and culture -- and multiple drives across the Alps. Munich banker Thaddaeus Joseph Kuehnel said that in 1982, when then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger left his post as archbishop of Munich and Freising to become head of the Vatican's doctrinal congregation, the cardinal seemed sad about leaving his home. "I told him that he need not be sad, I would bring Bavaria to Rome for him," Kuehnel told Catholic News Service in May. This started a series of cross-continental journeys of Bavarian food, drink and cultural items. www.catholic.org/printer_...on=Cathcom |
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Dinabella |
Re: Love of Bavarian food, culture sustains pope's friendshi | #2 | ||
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Posts: 1436 12/07/05 02:16:24 |
Benodette, thank you for this touching article.
Quote: And now I'm sitting here with tears in my eyes.  Poor Papa, his sister's death has surely been a cruel shock for him. But it's comforting to read that he has such a nice friend who helped him out of these hard times ... |
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Benodette |
A Meeting with Cardinal Ratzinger | #3 | ||
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Posts: 8228 12/07/05 16:38:41 |
Cathleen Kaveny teaches law and theology at the University of Notre Dame.
My Meeting with Cardinal Ratzinger Cathleen Kaveny I have met Pope Benedict XVI only once. It was seventeen years ago, when I was a graduate student at Yale. Richard John Neuhaus had organized an invitation-only conference in New York on biblical interpretation. Among the invited guests were Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, Raymond Brown, the widely respected biblical scholar, and the eminent Lutheran theologian George Lindbeck, my dissertation adviser, who had been a delegated observer at the Second Vatican Council. With the breezy temerity of youth, I wrote Neuhaus (then still Lutheran), and asked to be the observer from the next generation at the conference. Much to my amazement, he acceded to my request. www.commonwealmagazine.or...ticle=1230 |
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galantarie |
Der geflechter Spiegel ! | #4 | ||
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Posts: 5022 12/07/05 17:23:25 Member |
"Benodette", boy! was that initial article you brought to our attention for "Spiegel" (by Thomas Hetlin, Ulrich Schwarz, Alexander Smoltczyk and Peter Wensierski)
twisted, biased and extremely on the slanted "progressive"'s take of the "modern" Church and wordly matters!!! I am sure Papa never expounded, as was reported, the premise that: 'As in the past, man is delegated to the sidelines in Ratzinger's perspective. And as he had done so many times before -- and perhaps for the last time? -- he claimed that Jesus died for the truth, not for our sins...' It sounded like the older John Allen, Jr....but even worse!!! Those writers made fun of Our Papa's beautiful [and what I deem soothing] voice, amongst other snickering remarks!!! They also are ready to throw Our Papa prematurely into his grave!!! unbelievable, disrespectful, and concerned with only their insight and wishful thinking how it will come about!....heartbreaking.... Indeed, I had to weed through the lines to get a decent story!...so what's new??????????????????? and Cathleen Kaveny's "advice" to Our Papa is not much better...ugh!!! Alle diesen geflechten Sinnen!!!! "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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TERESA BENEDETTA |
Re: Duplicate threads? | #5 | ||
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Posts: 1055 12/07/05 22:05:27 Member |
Not to quibble, but isn't the material on this thread the sort of thing that was being posted on "Interesting Facts/Tidbits.."?
And I think, in fact, the Kuehnel story was posted there 2-3 weeks ago. Also, I was under the impression that "serious" news and commentary about the Pope was carried on "Pope Benedict Round-up". |
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LOUISE BROWN |
Re: Der geflechter Spiegel ! | #6 | ||
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Posts: 1510 12/08/05 03:21:23 |
Galantarie,
I agree with you and although I found the article interesting in parts, the 'snidey' bits were not wasted on me. Teresa Benedetta, Yep, you're right; this is the sort of material to be posted on the 'interesting facts and tidbits' thread. Obviously some of the stories that have or may be posted on this thread, we will have seen before on various places on the forum. The 'banker' story is very good. He really shows Joseph's 'holy manner' and mode of life in that article and the part where Joseph's sister Maria dies is very poignant  (especially as they were all friends together with Georg too)I certainly hope he will be able to keep the friendship in some way even though they both know how difficult it may prove to be with Joseph in the Vatican as Pope.  It's a nice story.Regards, Louise |
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Benodette |
Re: Duplicate threads | #7 | ||
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Posts: 8228 12/08/05 07:14:46 |
The news thread here is intended for current and immediate news. The "Pope Benedict Round-up" seems to me to be more of a summary.
The thread for anecdotal stories may well be similar to some of the material on Interesting Facts but it is intended for news stories and articles which contain anecdotal material and the title makes this clear. As for repetition I note that some material which appeared on this forum a while ago is now making an appearance again in the alternative forum set up by Teresa Benedetta. As the audience is pretty much the same I wonder why this is acceptable in that context if it draws comment here. I started these threads so people would have a convenient place where published stories about Joseph Ratzinger and Pope Benedict can be accessed conveniently. If anyone objects, could you please send me a message rather than turning this thread into a discussion of whether it should be here or not? If feeling is against continuing these threads I shall ask Christopher to remove them. In any case I have neither the time nor the inclination to maintain these threads alone. For this to work other people must also contribute in a positive way. I will look forward to receiving your comments. |
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Benodette |
Articles posted | #8 | ||
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Posts: 8228 12/08/05 07:18:25 |
The three articles I have posted were chosen because they all contained some interesting anecdotal material about Joseph Ratzinger. The one by Cathleen Kaveny was posted because she met and conversed with him. The fact that her views subsequently developed in a different direction from his was not, in my view, reason for not including it. The same is true for the Spiegel article it contains some nice anecdotes.
It should not be necessary to edit articles to maintain the equilibrium of this forum. The sensible thing is to read and absorb what interests you and then skim over the rest and forget it. That is what sensible people do with newspapers and other media. Otherwise we would all spend our days writing furious letters to The Times. I have sometimes been rather shocked at the venomous nature of the comments in this forum. Considering it is focused on the gentle, sensitive and highly intelligent individual who is now our Papa, this does not seem appropriate. You can be certain that if Joseph Ratzinger were to meet Cathleen Kaveny today, he would be every bit as courteous and charming as he was seventeen years ago. He is a man of dialogue, who welcomes robust but courteous discussion. Lets try to remember that. |
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galantarie |
Re: Articles posted | #9 | ||
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Posts: 5022 12/08/05 12:51:57 Member |
"Benodette"...I said nothing venomous. I saw what I saw, and merely spoke the truth. The articles you presented were "ugly"...only people with no heart would say elsewise. Louise definitely has a heart; and she agreed with me. I never said we could not learn anything from those articles; but would not it have been better and "nicer" to be a journalist who writes more straight forward instead of slanted!...[Matter-of-fact so slanted that they end up being death wishes for Our Holy Father, in that also they cannot wait until he is replaced!...
And then telling the Vicar of Christ of this Earth what he should do and not do???????????????] Why cannot good people of all backgrounds just be satisfied to listen to the words and intentions of Christ....instead of always seeking what they personally want?????????????? "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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mag6nideum |
Re: Articles posted | #10 | ||
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Posts: 1920 12/08/05 14:02:47 |
About the first article (Der Spiegel) posted by Benodette:
I met a German man (around 60 years old) the day before the article was posted here. I congratulated him on the fact that a German was elected as pope, etc. He shared my absolute admiration for B16 although he is also a Protestant. But, he also said that he had left Germany permanently a week ago because, in his view his beloved Germany is not only economically "bankrupt" but, more fundamentally, also on the spiritual level. Of course there are many exceptions but this is his assessment of the general "Geist" there. According to him this could also be seen clearly in the reaction of many German journalists ( not every single one!) on the election of Joseph Ratzinger. "They in fact didn't know how to react" (his words)... mostly because of the reasons mentioned above. Der Spiegel's article to a large extent illustrated to me what this German was trying to tell me. But he also added that the attitude in the press re: the pope has started to change positively. |
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LOUISE BROWN |
Re: Articles posted | #11 | ||
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Posts: 1510 12/09/05 04:37:06 |
Galantarie,
The advice given to him by Cathleen Kaveny was pathetic!! As if he needs her advice about anything; AND she was talking rubbish because he does indeed possess all the characteristics of a loving, merciful person and certainly DOES NOT need to be reminded to adopt the principles of one. mag, The press are cruel when they are disappointed in a choice for which they would not have chosen; but it all comes down to the same thing in the end. They wanted a 'liberal' Pope and did not get one. Regards, Louise |
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Marybenedict |
Papa's mission to Europe | #12 | ||
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Posts: 745 12/10/05 12:00:58 |
I haven't read the linked articles yet - so this isn't about any of that.
First of all - Benodette, I think it's great to start new threads and, if there is any repetition, it can't be helped. I'd rather have repetition than miss things! I don't go to all the threads every day by any means - haven't the time. Magni6dem [sorry if I've spelt your name incorrectly!]: It is sad about Germany and about the whole of Europe - and I include Britain, because we are part of Europe. Papa Benedict is arguably the most intelligent, intellectual Pope we've ever had and he's going to make Europe his mission. Isn't that one of the reasons God [as Holy Spirit] chose him, a German and a European, at a time when the oldest part of Christendom has become secularised. It could be said that South America and Africa, for example, don't need Catholic renewal - not in the way that Europe does. As Christmas - the Feast of the Nativity - approaches once again amidst a splurge of noise and uncontrolled spending, we are reminded of the need to return to our Christian roots. Papa Benedict knows this and is preparing himself to work on Europe.......just wait and see. Pax et Bonum! Mary x |
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Marybenedict |
Cathleen Kaveny | #13 | ||
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Posts: 745 12/10/05 12:30:20 |
I've read it , now. Thank you, Benodette. This woman was, indeed, lucky to have had the chance to sit next to Papa seventeen years ago.
But...........Even I am rendered almost speechless by her "advice" to Papa. Where has she been for the past seven/eight months? Or was the article dated just after he was elected? In which case, it's possibly not quite so bad, but , even so, unforgiveable. Even if I were some great theologian - and I suspect she is not, even though she is a lecturer in Theology - I would not even think of giving advice to Papa Benedict. He has the mind of twelve professors - someone said a couple of months ago. It was obvious, even to a mere Catholic "in the pews" like me - that Papa knew at once that his work as Pope was going to be completely different from his work as Prefect of the CDF. When will people realise that he was doing a job at the CDF and doing it well? He is a man of God, a man from whom the light of Christ and His peace shine out. He is indeed "benedictus" [blessed] and that Latin verb is benedicere [to bless]. We praise God - Deum laudamus [laudare = to praise, for Ms Kaveny, not for my fellow forum readers, who know that!] for Benedict XVI and pray that he'll be given many years in which to complete his mission. And - why labour the point about man and woman? They are different - Deo gratias! Pax et Bonum! Mary x Keep giving us these links, Benodette! -------------------------------------------------------- I've just checked: it was dated May 6th, but I maintain there's still no excuse! And, did you notice the list of articles - one was entitled "Is the Papacy obsolete?". I clicked on it and scanned through it - the usual arguments about allowing priests to marry; ending with advice to "Loosen up". This Commonweal is clearly an extreme left wing Catholic magazine, which I, personally, would disregard along with the British "Tablet" magazine. Mary |
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mag6nideum |
SECULAR EUROPE and B16 | #14 | ||
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Posts: 1920 12/10/05 14:31:29 |
@Marybenedict, re: my post about German guy whom I've met. I live in South-Africa. Many colleagues and ex-students of mine are now working in Europe. They left South Africa as Christians but every single one of them have become agnostics or worse. The secular, liberal-humanistic (or whatever it can be called), relativistic thinking European society seems to have waved a magic wand over them. The only thing that seems to "count" in Europe, and the West generally(?), is human rights and total "human freedom". That's one of the reasons for the joy felt by the Protestant German guy when Papa was elected, an elation I and all of us share with him, a fervent hope that Papa Ratzinger's mission for Europe will be fruitful.
For me personally it has been a very sad phenomenon to read about, and to experience during short visits to Europe and Brittain, the seemingly freely-willed cultural and religious suicide of a continent and civilization which I've always held in the highest esteem... have idealised really. To see the "cradle" of Western society slowly disintegrate on a spiritual level makes my heart bleed. And it is not only the result of globalization. It has actually started before the world has become a "village", as Ratzinger had been analyzing time and again, to the chagrin of the post-modern intellectuals, in his many writings and speeches (not that I have read these before he was elected Pope, it is only since April that I even knew about him, being non-Catholic). What is rather frightening is the emergence of a subtle, and sometimes overt, attack on Christian beliefs in one of the southern-most countries in the world: South Africa__ far away from "everything". Many theologians who went from here to Europe for post-graduate studies return with the conviction that Jesus was a (granted, very special, unique) man from Galilee, but he wasn't God's Son, he wasn't Christ, the divine Saviour. THAT interpretation, according to them, was grafted onto Jesus by St. Paul and some traditions in the early church, influenced by Graeco-Roman philosophy, and anyhow, much of what is written in the Gospels is not the words of Jesus himself, but part of the interpretation of these different "traditions, added later. You've all heard this line of reasoning, I'm sure, and the Jesus Seminar in the USA has done its bit in spreading this. The ordinary Christian in my country is baffled and in a kind of agony when THEOLOGIANS spread these ideas. If Christians who had been studying for years and years tell you that you've all along been believing in a man-made construct, a kind of pie-in-the-sky belief that is now out-dated, and that has no historical truth.....let me stop here..... It has become a world-wide phenomenon. To be "orthodox" in your Christian beliefs is now suddenly the equivalent of uninformedness, naivety and...well...you've been caught out by paternalistic, male-chauvenist history of the past 2000 years. Thank you Joseph Ratzinger. Apart from what you say and write, I can see that what you believe is true just by looking at you. GO for Europe, please! And, of course, the ultimate success will be the work of the Holy Spirit, no matter how wonderful Papa is. He is in the first instance an instrument of God. I suppose we also have to pray for Europe, something that I do not do enough. Regards and "choy" to all you lovely folks on this forum! Wish I could one day see you in real life! |
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TERESA BENEDETTA |
Re: About Ms. Kaveny | #15 | ||
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Posts: 1055 12/10/05 15:18:38 Member |
I read that piece by Ms. Kaveny around the time it first appeared and it drove me to apoplexy that she would presume to be so condescending in her "advice" to someone whose mind and sensibility are beyond her reach, much less her comprehension - regardless of how high-and-mighty she might think herself to be! I was so outraged that I decided to put it out of my mind forever - and here she turns up again like the proverbial bad coin, only worse!
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Benodette |
Clergy recall Pope Benedict as humble and shy | #16 | ||
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Posts: 8228 12/10/05 19:42:58 |
For many of the world's faithful, the first image of Pope Benedict XIV came as he stood on a balcony greeting thousands in St. Peter's Square dressed in papal robes, a white skull cap and with outstretched arms.
Father Gregory Parkes' first visual is somewhat more subdued. His first images of then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger occurred while he studied in Rome from 1996 to 2000. www.thefloridacatholic.or...bleshy.htm |
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Budwud |
Re: Clergy recall Pope Benedict as humble and shy | #17 | ||
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Posts: 349 12/11/05 11:58:33 |
Thanks for the great link, Benodette.
Quote: That quote is simply another example of how Benedict XVI practices what he preaches. Over and over in his writings, he refers to Paul's letter to the Corinthians stating that the greatest virtue is charity. He never condemns others for having different opinions or dismisses them out of hand as having no merit whatsoever. He does not set himself up as judge and jury and is respectful towards all. This is an objective lesson that we all should take to heart and not merely pay lip service to. |
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LOUISE BROWN |
Re: About Ms. Kaveny | #18 | ||
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Posts: 1510 12/12/05 03:13:39 |
I thought Ms Kaveny spoke about him as if she were analysing an 'object' rather than the lovely Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger of the CDF.
There are some of us who actually ADMIRE his strong stand on issues AND we know that he has a lot of love inside him because he has the true love of God residing with him. Ms Kaveny is slanting to the 'liberal' when she purports to give him advice; as do a lot of the other critics. They do not understand where he is coming from because they do not see his standard of holiness as being compatible with God. They make God in their 'own image' in which he never judges anything and is always ready to accept whatever trend is 'current' in society. They have a form of religion, but they deny the power of it. Joseph Ratzinger, on the other hand, knows what is right and endeavors to do it. Regards, Louise |
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mag6nideum |
Re: About Ms. Kaveny | #19 | ||
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Posts: 1920 12/12/05 13:59:31 |
Shucks, I have just now read the article by Ms Kaveny twice and am dumbfounded by the 5 points of "advice" which she took it upon herself to give to the Pope. Is it uncharitable to feel that is rather arrogant in tone and content? I hope her eyes have been opened in the meantime. I'm getting quite angry.
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TERESA BENEDETTA |
Re: About Ms. Kaveny | #20 | ||
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Posts: 1055 12/12/05 17:30:08 Member |
mag6nideum- As I said above, it makes me apoplectic with outrage just to think of her gall. SUCH SANCTIMONIOUS CONDESCENSION really makes me sick to the gills.
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