S
stumbler
Guest
BY VICTOR L. SIMPSON
Thursday, May 19, 2005
VATICAN CITY – Although 78 and seen by some as a transitional figure, Pope Benedict XVI moved quickly in the first month of his papacy, standing firm on the moral code for his flock while reaching out to Jews and other non-Catholics and seeking to break down a half-century-old barrier with China.
When he was elected as pope April 19 in one of the shortest conclaves in modern history, there were questions of how the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, seen as a severe guardian of church orthodoxy, would fill the shoes of his crowd-pleasing predecessor, Pope John Paul II.
. . .
For Roman Catholics, the new pope was expected to maintain the Vatican’s firm opposition to abortion, euthanasia, gay marriage and female priests, making clear that changes on those issues are out of the question.
On that line, Benedict selected San Francisco Archbishop William Levada to fill the job Ratzinger held for 24 years – prefect of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith. The choice gives new power to a champion of church doctrine who has spoken out against same-sex marriages while leading Roman Catholics in a city with a vibrant gay community.
Benedict gave a forceful indication of his moral stance during a recent visit to St. John Lateran, the basilica that is the pope’s cathedral as bishop of Rome.
The pope “must not proclaim his own ideas, but ever link himself and the church to obedience to the word of God, when faced with all attempts of adaptation or of watering down, as with all opportunism,” Benedict said.
Quoting his predecessor, the pontiff emphasized the “inviolability of human life from conception to natural death,” a church phrase that refers to the bans on abortion and euthanasia. . . .
Full article
Thursday, May 19, 2005
VATICAN CITY – Although 78 and seen by some as a transitional figure, Pope Benedict XVI moved quickly in the first month of his papacy, standing firm on the moral code for his flock while reaching out to Jews and other non-Catholics and seeking to break down a half-century-old barrier with China.
When he was elected as pope April 19 in one of the shortest conclaves in modern history, there were questions of how the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, seen as a severe guardian of church orthodoxy, would fill the shoes of his crowd-pleasing predecessor, Pope John Paul II.
. . .
For Roman Catholics, the new pope was expected to maintain the Vatican’s firm opposition to abortion, euthanasia, gay marriage and female priests, making clear that changes on those issues are out of the question.
On that line, Benedict selected San Francisco Archbishop William Levada to fill the job Ratzinger held for 24 years – prefect of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith. The choice gives new power to a champion of church doctrine who has spoken out against same-sex marriages while leading Roman Catholics in a city with a vibrant gay community.
Benedict gave a forceful indication of his moral stance during a recent visit to St. John Lateran, the basilica that is the pope’s cathedral as bishop of Rome.
The pope “must not proclaim his own ideas, but ever link himself and the church to obedience to the word of God, when faced with all attempts of adaptation or of watering down, as with all opportunism,” Benedict said.
Quoting his predecessor, the pontiff emphasized the “inviolability of human life from conception to natural death,” a church phrase that refers to the bans on abortion and euthanasia. . . .
Full article
