This is the first tribute I have seen so far in the media for the Pope's double anniversary coming up within the next week. It is complimentary but unfortunately, quite cursory. It reads like something the writer had to to 'whip up' for a deadline much as she would any other news story and it shows because it is quite thin and scant for the vastness of the subject matter, and she has recourse to his most recent statements to fill it up. Nonetheless, she obviously appreciates the man and his work, and - a rarity in MSM - correctly minimizes the relevance of the daily reporting on the Vatican in the overall context of of this Pope's mission and objectives. And for that, I thank and commend her most sincerely. And ANSA, the premier Italian news agency, for running the story. I just hope they will eventually run something substantial to match the subject.
Benedict XVI at 85:
Theologian and reformer, he is resolute in governing the Church
with transparency and vigilant over the legacy of Vatican-II
by Giovanna Chirri
VATICAN CITY, April 12 (Translated from ANSA) - A theologian who, upon becoming Pope, assumed with determination the task of being a reformer.
But who, in his daily governance of the Church, never loses sight of the objective: to return faith in Christ to the center of Church life and to the life of secularized man.
The 85th birthday of Joseph Ratzinger on April 16, quite near the seventh anniversary of his election as Pope on April 19, comes at a time when the German Pope, having reinforced the Church with his firm fight against priestly pedophilia and financial reforms which are starting to bear fruit, is focused on a new and great adventure: a reflection on the Second Vatican Council which will animate the Year of Faith he has decreed from October 2012 to November 2013, in order to usher in a new season for Christianity and the Catholic Church in the world.
That Council which the Lefebvrian traditionalists - to whom Benedict XVI had extended a hand shortly after becoming Pope in an attempt to heal the rupture they caused in 1988 - persist in rejecting. Such that last March, the the Vatican sent them a letter that seemed to be an ultimatum for a definitive answer
[to the formula for reconciliation proposed by the Vatican].
For the 85-year-old Pope - who in recent weeks has been described in some media as frail and perhaps even ready to resign - this is the direction to keep, independent of the often negative reporting about the Church, like Vatileaks and other 'scandals', financial or otherwise, suggested now and again by the media.
Even as the reporting on the Vatican reaches new lows, the Ratzingerian line remains that of transparency- ready, if need be, to order an internal ivnestigation as the Vatican did to investigate charges of corruptiona nd financial wrongdoing made by the former Secretary of the Governatorate, now the apostolic nuncio to the United States.
The intentions and determination of Benedict XVI emerge clearly in his most recent consistory and most recent public discourses. especially during his trip to Latin America and his various homilies during Holy Week.
The 'crisis of the faith',along with the need for a 'joyous' witness to Christianity, animated the cardinals' pre-consistory meeting with the Pope for reflection and prayer last February.
On his apostolic visit to Mexico and Cuba last month, he underscored the theme of religious freedom and the public role of the Church.
Then there were the great discourses during Holy Week, especially on Maundy Thursday, when the Pope called on all priests to be fulltime priests, renouncing so-called 'self-realization' goals in order to fully serve the Church and the faithful by bearing witness to the faith with their own lives. Significantly, he condemned acts of disobedience for the sake of reform, saying that "obedience is the premise for every true renewal".
"Anyone who considers the history of the post-conciliar era," the Pope said at the Chrismal Mass, "can recognize the process of true renewal, which often took unexpected forms in living movements and made almost tangible the inexhaustible vitality of holy Church, the presence and effectiveness of the Holy Spirit" and from which "fresh currents of life burst forth".
During the Easter Vigil, he reflected on modern man who is tempted by the great potential of his own abilities to remain within his own small personal horizon, inviting him to illuminate his life with the light of God.
The Pope's Holy Week reflections summarize the perspectives for the eighth year of his Pontificate beyond the narrow context of petty reporting on the Vatican.
They explain the strength of this 85-year-old who, as a cardinal, was never concerned with participating in palace intrigue nor building a power base, nor even of influencing any groups within the Church and outside it.
As Pope, he has had to deal with counter-offensives from those whose attitudes he never shared, but they have not made him change course - to live Christianity as it is meant to be and to communicate it to others.
Who knows what surprises are forthcoming from the ex-theological consultant to Vatican-II in his revisitation of the Council's legacy in the context of the Year of Faith?
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 13/04/2012 05:58]