The Pope and his ex-students
dispute the Enlightenment view that man
is no longer subject to anyone or anything
Translated from the 9/2/12 issue of
The Ratzinger Schuelerkreis spent the second day of their annual reunion-seminar in Castel Gandolfo on Saturday kn the presence of Benedict XVI in the Sala della Rocca of at the Apostolic Residence.
The reunion began Thursday afternoon, , August 30, at the Mariopolis Center of the town, where they held their first sessions. Since he became Pope, Benedict XVI has participated in the full day of discussions that follows the presentations made by the seminar's resource persons.
The theme for this year's seminar was ecumenism and the relationship among the Christian churches.
During a break in the Saturday morning session, one of the alumni, Mons. Barthelemy Adoukonou, secretary of the Pontifical Council, said, "This morning we dwelt on how we can get beyond the Enlightenment view on the basis of faith and ecumenical dialog.... in particular, how the Enlightenment sought to impose its own interpretation of salvation and justification."
[Adoukonou is from Benin and was a protege of the late Cardinal Bernard Gantin. In 1977, he was celebrating with Prof. Ratzinger and his sitr Maria his successful defense of his doctoral dissertation at the University of Regensburg, when the news was formally announced that the Professor had been named Archbishop of Munich and Freising by Paul VI. Coincidentally, both Gantin and Ratzinger were to be made cardinal three months later, Gantin would go on to become Dean of the College of Cardinals, and upon his retirement toBenin at age 80, Cardinal Ratzinger would be elected to succeed him as Dean.]
"For the Enlightenment thinkers," Adoukonou explained, "man's redemption meant that he had become free of every authority, and can therefore not be subject to any authority, not even that of the Church".
"Today, we must certainly repent for the things that provoked division in the Church, but we should also make sure that man today must acknowledge the absoluteness of God so that our time becomes more favorable for the faith".
Adoukonou said the Enlightenment had "believed it had negated faith, rejecting the sacraments and miracles and even Christology, along with authority, in the conviction that no one can impose anything on anyone".
The discussants agreed on the need "to present the Absolute to man, so he can turn back to God as the source of life and love...We can bear witness that with God, everything is possible, the Absolute is all for man because he is all love".
The seminar was to conclude Saturday afternoon. On Sunday morning, the Pope will celebrate Mass with the Schuelerkreis whose members will also be present for the Angelus.