Posted on 04/20/2005 1:32:19 PM PDT by marylandrepub1
In his teens, he was briefly a member of the Hitler Youth, drafted into the army and eventually deserted. He served time in a POW camp. In 1951, he was ordained and became a Cardinal in 1977. In 1981, Pope John Paul II appointed him head of the powerful Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, where he has served for the last quarter of a century.
He is widely viewed as a conservative theologian and a hard-line enforcer of Catholic Church doctrine. In the 1980s, Ratzinger was a fierce opponent of liberation theology.
He strongly opposes abortion, an increased role of women in the church, artificial birth control and homosexuality.
In 2003, Ratzinger's office issued instructions to Catholic politicians to vote against gay marriage. During last year's presidential election campaign, he advised US bishops to deny Communion to politicians who support abortion rights - who many saw as directly targeting Catholic presidential candidate, John Kerry. Ratzinger also publicly cautioned Europe against admitting Turkey to the European Union stating that the continent is essentially Christian
(Excerpt) Read more at democracynow.org ...
I love my new pope. The mental breakdown started within the hour he was presented.
Love it!
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