Trying to track down a quote

[Dan_Daly]

Greetings,

I’m trying to find a quote I remember reading from Pope Benedict XVI in which he said something to the effect of “Vatican II is not a break in tradition, but there have been people who have acted as if there was no tradition prior to the council, and that we had to start from zero”

I’m not sure if it was something he said before or after becoming Pope. Thanks for any help in finding the source for this.

Pax Christi.

 

[James_OPL]

Here’s one link :praytellblog.com/index.php/2011/06/01/was-vatican-ii-a-rupture-with-tradition/

I believe it was in a Christmas address made in 2005. So it would have been after he became Pope.

James

 

[Dee_S]

Here is another link to an article on Pope Benedict XVI and his Christmas address, also his thoughts on Vatican II.
cjd.org/paper/vatcoun2.html

This is the link to the Vatican website for the complete speech:
vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/speeches/2005/december/documents/hf_ben_xvi_spe_20051222_roman-curia_en.html

 

[Dan_Daly]

Thank you. I’m not sure if the exact comment I was remembering is in this speech, but if not it is at least his thoughts on the same topic. Very interesting reading.

Pax Christi

 

[manualman]

I didn’t check the other links, but I think the key phrase he used that you might want to search for is “hermenuetic of rupture and Vatican II.”

B16 critizices those who see Vatican 2 as a replacement of everything that came before it rather than as one additional authoritative council that must be understood in union with all the others. Where the Vatican II documents may be ambiguous in places, the proper catholic course of action is to examine catholic teaching prior to the council in that matter to resolve the question, not to go all freestyle and speculative as if Vatican II happened in a vacuum.