Well there is a new pope, and his name is Ratzinger. To be honest I am not into cardinals and popes. However, as I have previously mentioned, I take classical (Biblical) Hebrew at the Department of Theology at the university. This means I'm the only anthropology student, studying with a group of student that are (most of them) planning to become priests. They are a real jolly bunch, and they like to tell Christian humor a lot. They're also very much into the world of Catholicism and popes, and they have been eagerly discussing who the next pope will be. My Hebrew teacher had said that he "sincerely hoped that it would not be Ratzinger...". The newly appointed pope is, to quote my teacher "more conservative than everything that conservative is". Now, a conversative pope is the last thing the world needs. I mean think about it. The newly deceased pope banned usage of condoms in Africa! He is responsible for the death of countless individuals, thousands!
My teacher told a joke about Ratzinger, it went something like this:
The Pope, some cardinal, and Ratzinger are standing outside heaven's gates waiting to enter. The pope goes in first. He goes in, and it takes a little while. Then the pope comes back out and says that he will be allowed to stay if he takes back some of the things he said about women's rights. Next the cardinal goes in. He takes longer than the pope. Then he comes out, and he says that he will be allowed to stay if he takes back some of the things he said about homosexuals. Next Ratzinger goes in. Ratzinger stays a very long time in there, and then Jesus comes out and says "oh I'm not allowed to stay unless I take back some of the things I said in my mountain speach!".
The theology students thought it was hilarious.
Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger of Germany, the Roman Catholic Church's leading hard-liner, was elected the new pope Tuesday evening in the first conclave of the new millennium by cardinals intent on sticking to conservative policy.
Some have questioned whether the new pope betrayed any pro-Nazi sentiment during his teenage years in Germany during World War II.
In his memoirs, the new pope speaks openly of being enrolled in Hitler's Nazi youth movement against his will when he was 14 in 1941, when membership was compulsory. He says he was soon let out because of his studies for the priesthood.
Ratzinger has gone on record about his Nazi past. In the 1997 book, Salt of the Earth, Ratzinger is asked whether he was ever in the Hitler Youth.
"At first we weren't," he says, speaking of himself and his older brother, "but when the compulsory Hitler Youth was introduced in 1941, my brother was obliged to join. I was still too young, but later as a seminarian, I was registered in the Hitler Youth. As soon as I was out of the seminary, I never went back. And that was difficult because the tuition reduction, which I really needed, was tied to proof of attendance at the Hitler Youth.
"Thank goodness there was a very understanding mathematics professor. He himself was a Nazi, but an honest man, and said to me, 'Just go once to get the document so we have it...' When he saw that I simply didn't want to, he said, 'I understand, I'll take care of it' and so I was able to stay free of it."
Two years later he was drafted into a Nazi anti-aircraft unit as a helper, a common fate for teenage boys too young to be soldiers. Enrolled as a soldier at 18, in the last months of the war, he barely finished basic training.
"We are certain that he will continue on the path of reconciliation between Christians and Jews that John Paul II began," Paul Spiegel, head of Germany's main Jewish organization, told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.
mnbyondart.com I can appreciate that. It's
http://romario.byondart.com/romario.html romario online the same sort of concept as
http://baltimore-oriole.byondart.com/baltimore-oriole.html buy baltimore oriole in recording, when a mistake,
http://jeniffer-lopez.byondart.com/jeniffer-lopez.html _ or an incidental, can sometimes jeniffer lopez be noticed and played up in
http://prinz.byondart.com/prinz.html order prinz the mix to great effect. I'll
http://james-paterson.byondart.com/james-paterson.html buy james paterson online attest to all of the above from
http://racquets.byondart.com/racquets.html racquets online experience. I can think of another
http://princes.byondart.com/princes.html buy princes particularly helpful exercise,
http://shaquille-oneil.byondart.com/shaquille-oneil.html shaquille oneil though I wasn't aware of it
http://megadeth.byondart.com/megadeth.html order megadeth at the time: I was, some years rivaldo back, even MORE hypercritical
http://rivaldo.byondart.com/rivaldo.html buy rivaldo online of my own writing and composing
http://puppets.byondart.com/puppets.html puppets online than I am now, and regrettably
http://brooke-shield.byondart.com/brooke-shield.html buy brooke shield during that time I threw away
http://nichole-kidman.byondart.com/nichole-kidman.html _ a lot of material which I could've nichole kidman done something with now. I had
http://pei.byondart.com/pei.html order pei a real block around lyrics for
http://bridgette-moynahan.byondart.com/bridgette-moynahan.html buy bridgette moynahan online byondart.comnm
Blaming the Pope for AIDS deaths, give me break. If you look at the countries like Uganda which were on of the few nations to actually cut their AIDS rate did it with a religious approach, called the ABC program for Abstinence, Be Faithful, Condoms. Even in that condoms were the last resort and not as widely advertised and not just given out. Unlike the other parts where countries have gone with the international approach of condoms & drugs have not done anything to resolve the problem, infact in many cases made it worse because they did nothing to change people's behavior and with the application of drugs allowed people to live longer continuing in the behavior that spreads AIDS and infecting more people. The Pope doesn't tell people in Africa to go have sex with multipule partners and use dirty needles and that is the reason AIDS is a problem. The Church stance inregards to sex would actually reduce AIDS, but its a behavor change and common cultural relativist view, you can't judge the behavior of a culture as right or wrong.
The nazi stuff is a feeble attempt at a smear, if Pope Benedict XVI because he has conservative religious values in that he believes the teachings of the Church should remain constant as a guide post for people to lead their lives and should be changed through cultural relativism to make people fell better about themselves. If you don't agree with the Church teachings you can always leave it, no one forces you to stay.
As for the another issue in regards to the shock many people have....its the Catholic Church of course they would pick a Catholic. the world needs a conservative Pope because you need a stable set of guidlines in life more than a set of guidelines to make you feel good.
