Posted on 01/14/2023 6:28:09 PM PST by marshmallow
Leftist theologian attacks late pontiff
MUNICH (ChurchMilitant.com) - A Marxist philosopher and dissident ex-priest is denigrating the theological legacy of Pope Benedict XVI.
On Tuesday, the German magazine Publik-Forum published an article by Brazilian Liberation Theology proponent Leonardo Boff, who shared his Marxist perception of the late Pontiff.
Boff declared that Benedict "proved to be the enemy of the friends of the poor." He berated the pope emeritus for focusing too heavily on traditional theology and not enthusiastically embracing Marxist theory.
The laicized Brazilian has a long history of conflicts with Pope Benedict XVI, going back decades to when Benedict was still Joseph Ratzinger.
Ratzinger's Crusade
Regarding Ratzinger's battle against Boff's Liberation Theology, Vatican journalist Marco Tosatti wrote, "[H]e had spent his entire life, beginning with a document in 1984, opposing confusion between the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the 'gospel' of Karl Marx."
But while Boff and his ilk might use that type of statement as a sort of slander, it is at least partly true.
Originally perceived as something of a liberal and even appreciated by the leftist liberation theologians, Ratzinger quickly proved himself to be among the most doctrinally conservative clerics in the Vatican. As cardinal prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Ratzinger condemned Liberation Theology and its confusion of social justice with spiritual salvation.
(Excerpt) Read more at churchmilitant.com ...
Pope Benedict was a great man and the fact that a commie hates him is to me high praise of Benedict.
Boff is still around? I thought his teaching was banned 40+ years ago!
“ Pope Benedict was a great man and the fact that a commie hates him is to me high praise of Benedict.”
***************************************************
IMHO, he may well turn out to have been the LAST TRUE POPE. I hope that doesn’t turn out to be true but fear it will.
Pope Francis sent a short letter to liberation theologian Leonardo Boff to thank him for his support and to offer him his best wishes on his 80th birthday, December 14, 2018. In this message, published by Leonardo Boff on his blog on December 17, the Pope greets Boff as a brother.
He reminds him of their first encounter, in San Miguel, during a meeting of the Latin American Conference for Religious (CLAR). He also mentions to him that he has continued to read some of his books. Finally he notes that he prays for Leonardo Boff and for his wife.
These good wishes and thanks from the Pope came in response to a letter previously sent by Leonardo Boff to Francis who, he explains, ...
I’m surprised the old heretic is still alive, not surprised that he and Bergoglio are best buds ...
They, too, will soon pass. The Catholic Church will not.
I thought Boff was dead.
Apparently Francis resurrected him. A miracle.
I thought he was dead. What is he, like Soros, one of Satan’s lieutenants who has been granted temporal immortality.
As cardinal prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Ratzinger condemned Liberation Theology and its confusion of social justice with spiritual salvation.
As neat and tight a summation as possible. Boff is one of those creatures the successful assault on reason and common sense that the so called 60’s adversary culture spawned. These evil people discerned an opportunity appearing out of the endless clamoring over various so-called injustices, most of which were simply the inevitable nature of human society. n opportunity to seize power in various key cultural, intellectual and religious institutions by screaming ‘justice’, ‘peace’, and most risibly ‘freedom’ continually. Boffo was not as clever as the real class of puppet masters who from the early 1970’s began the long march through the establishments which has now led to subverting the basic rationales of government and replacing even the weak intellectual dedication to the pursuit of truth present in the 60’s with pure ignorance embodied in CRT and ‘Queer Theory’.
It is slanderous to say Benedict was not a friend of the poor. He loved and defended them and condemned the more cutthroat version of unbridled capitalism. It is possible to defend the poor and remain doctrinally orthodox. Jesus fed, healed, and loved the poor but would not deny an iota of truth.
robowombat, I’m not accusing you of anything, I’m just responding to the main thrust of the article, and choose to reply to your excellent post. Please don’t misunderstand me.
I understand. Pope Benedict was simply articulating traditional Catholic doctrine on the church’s responsibilities to the poor. Traditional Protestant doctrine emphasized individual responsibility and the need to help those who would help themselves, hence the curious terms ‘the worthy poor’ and the virtuous poor’.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.