Youth, papacy and resignation: what is in the deed of Benedict XVI
Details on the deed placed in Benedict XVI's coffin. The point of Adnkronos
A few hours after the funeral of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, the Vatican has disclosed the text of the 'deed' in Latin which was placed in a metal seal inside the coffin where Ratzinger's remains rest , together with the medals of the pontificate and the balls.
WHAT IT SAYS IN THE DEED
In the text that briefly describes the pontificate, Benedict XVI's "firm" fight against sexual abuse by priests is underlined. "In the light of Christ risen from the dead, on December 31st of the year of the Lord 2022, at 9.34 in the morning, as the year ended and we were ready to sing the Te Deum for the multiple benefits granted by the Lord, the beloved Pastor emeritus of the Church, Benedict XVI, passed from this world to the Father. The whole Church together with the Holy Father Francis in prayer accompanied his transit”, we read.
THE SHORT BIOGRAPHY OF RATZINGER
Then a short biography of Joseph Ratzinger.
Benedict XVI was the 265th Pope. His memory remains in the heart of the Church and of all humanity. Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, elected Pope on April 19, 2005, was born in Marktl am Inn, in the territory of the diocese of Passau (Germany), on April 16, 1927. His father was a police commissioner and came from a family of farmers in Lower Bavaria , whose economic conditions were rather modest. The mother was the daughter of craftsmen from Rimsting on Lake Chiem, and before marrying she had worked as a cook in various hotels.
He spent his childhood and adolescence in Traunstein, a small town near the border with Austria, about thirty kilometers from Salzburg, where he received his Christian, human and cultural formation. The time of his youth was not easy. His family's faith and education prepared him for the hard experience of the problems associated with the Nazi regime, knowing the climate of strong hostility towards the Catholic Church in Germany. In this complex situation, he discovered the beauty and truth of faith in Christ.
From 1946 to 1951 he studied at the Higher School of Philosophy and Theology in Freising and at the University of Munich. On 29 June 1951 he was ordained a priest, starting his teaching activity in the same school in Freising the following year. Subsequently he was a lecturer in Bonn, Münster, Tübingen and Regensburg. In 1962 he became the official expert of the Second Vatican Council, as assistant to Cardinal Joseph Frings. On 25 March 1977 Pope Paul VI appointed him Archbishop of München und Freising and he received episcopal ordination on 28 May of the same year. He chose 'Cooperatores Veritatis' as episcopal motto.
FROM CARDINAL TO POPE BENEDICT XVI
“Pope Montini – the 'deed' recalls – created and proclaimed him Cardinal, with the Title of Santa Maria Consolatrice al Tiburtino, in the consistory of 27 June 1977. On 25 November 1981 John Paul II appointed him Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith ; and on 15 February of the following year he renounced the pastoral care of the Archdiocese of München und Freising. On 6 November 1998 he was appointed Vice-Dean of the College of Cardinals and on 30 November 2002 he became dean, taking possession of the Title of the Suburbicarian Church of Ostia. On Friday 8 April 2005 he presided over the funeral Mass of John Paul II in St. Peter's Square.
He was elected Pope by the Cardinals gathered in the Conclave on 19 April 2005 and took the name of Benedict XVI. From the loggia of blessings he presented himself as a "humble worker in the vineyard of the Lord". On Sunday 24 April 2005 he solemnly began his Petrine ministry.
Benedict XVI placed the theme of God and faith at the center of his pontificate, in the continuous search for the face of the Lord Jesus Christ and helping everyone to know him, in particular through the publication of the work Jesus of Nazareth, in three volumes. Equipped with vast and profound biblical and theological knowledge, he had the extraordinary ability to elaborate illuminating syntheses on the main doctrinal and spiritual themes, as well as on the crucial questions of the life of the Church and of contemporary culture. He successfully promoted dialogue with Anglicans, Jews and representatives of other religions; as well as resumed contacts with the priests of the Community of Saint Pius X".
RESIGNATION
Then we recall the Pope's announcement in Latin of his resignation on the morning of 11 February 2013, during a consistory convened for ordinary decisions about three canonizations, after the vote of the cardinals.
"In the last General Audience of the pontificate, on 27 February 2013, in thanking each and every one also for the respect and understanding with which his decision had been accepted, he assured: 'I will continue to accompany the Church's journey with prayer and reflection, with that dedication to the Lord and his Bride that I have tried to live up to now every day and that I would like to always live'. After a brief stay in the residence of Castel Gandolfo, he lived the last years of his life in the Vatican, in the Mater Ecclesiae monastery, dedicating himself to prayer and meditation. The doctrinal magisterium of Benedict XVI is summarized in the three encyclicals Deus caritas est (December 25, 2005), Spe salvi (November 30, 2007) and Caritas in veritate (June 29, 2009). He handed over to the Church four Apostolic Exhortations, numerous Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Letters, as well as the Catecheses proposed in the General Audiences and the allocutions, including those pronounced during the twenty-four apostolic journeys made around the world".
THE PROMOTION OF THE NEW EVANGELIZATION
“In the face of increasingly rampant relativism and practical atheism, in 2010, with the motu proprio Ubicumque et semper, he established the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization, to which in January 2013 he transferred responsibilities in the field of catechesis. He fought firmly against the crimes committed by representatives of the clergy against minors or vulnerable people, continually calling the Church to conversion, prayer, penance and purification. As a theologian of recognized authority, he left behind a rich heritage of studies and research on the fundamental truths of the faith”, concludes the text of the 'deed'.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/mondo/benedetto-xvi-rogito/ on Thu, 05 Jan 2023 08:05:00 +0000.