Papal Writings

Is truth knowable? If we know the truth, must we hide it in the name of tolerance? Cardinal Ratzinger engages the problem of truth, tolerance, religion and culture in the modern world. Describing the vast array of world religions, Ratzinger embraces the difficult challenge of meeting diverse understandings of spiritual truth while defending the Catholic teaching of salvation through Jesus Christ. "But what if it is true?" is the question that he poses to cultures that decry the Christian position on man's redemption. Upholding the notion of religious truth while asserting the right of religious freedom, Cardinal Ratzinger outlines the timeless teaching of the Magisterium in language that resonates with our embattled culture. A work of extreme sensitivity, understanding, and spiritual maturity, this book is an invaluable asset to those who struggle to hear the voice of truth in the modern religious world.

"Beyond all particular questions, the real problem lies in the question about truth. Can truth be recognized? Or, is the question about truth simply inappropriate in the realm of religion and belief? But what meaning does belief then have, what positive meaning does religion have, if it cannot be connected with truth?"
—Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger
From the Preface

Paperback, 280 pages

Believing and Living in Our Time

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger and Peter Seewald

During his years as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, well-known Vatican prelate Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger has given three in-depth interviews. The first two interviews have become best selling books: The Ratzinger Report and Salt of the Earth. Because of the tremendous reception those books received, the Cardinal agreed to do another interview with journalist Peter Seewald, who had done the very popular Salt of the Earth interview. This third in-depth interview addresses deep questions of faith and the living of that faith in the modern world. The interview took place over three full days spent at the Benedictine Abbey of Monte Cassino in a setting of the silence, prayer, and hospitality of the monks. For this meeting with the highly regarded Churchman, theologian, and author, the seasoned journalist, who had fallen away from the faith but eventually returned to the Church, once again provided a very stimulating, well-prepared series of wide-ranging questions on profound issues. The Cardinal responds with candor, frankness and deep insight, giving answers that are sometimes surprising and always thought provoking. "When Cardinal Ratzinger, one of the Church's great wise men, sat opposite me in the Abbey and patiently recounted to me the Gospel and the belief of Christendom from the beginning of the world to its end, something of the mystery that holds the world together became more tangible. 'Creation itself', he said, 'bears within itself an ordered pattern from which we can understand the ideas of God--and even the right way to live.' "--- Peter Seewald. Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger is the Prefect of the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. He is a highly regarded theologian who has been a university professor and the author of numerous theological works as well as a leading theologian at the Second Vatican Council. Peter Seewald is a German journalist who has been a staff writer for two of Germany's top weekly magazines as well as for one of the country's most respected newspapers.

Foreword by Scott Hahn

In Many Religions, One Covenant, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger spans the deep divides in modern Catholic scholarship to present a compelling biblical theology, modern in its concerns yet classical in its breadth. It is his classical mastery, his ressourcement, that enables the Cardinal to build a bridge.

Cardinal Ratzinger seeks to deepen our understanding of the Bible's most fundamental principle. The covenant defines religion for Christians and Jews. We cannot discern God's design or his will if we do not meditate upon his covenant.

The covenant, then, is the principle that unites the New Testament with the Old, the Scriptures with Tradition, and each of the various branches of theology with all the others. The covenant does more than bridge the gaps between these elements; it fills in the gaps, so that biblical scholarship, dogmatic theology, and magesterial authority all stand on common ground — solid ground.

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger

Paperback, 120 pages

Milestones

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger

Rich in humor and culture, passion and love for the cause of God and of man, Milestones is the autobiography of one of the most influential men in the Catholic Church at the turn of the millennium. In his famous Apology, Cardinal Newman accounted for his conversion to Catholicism. In this biography, which in certain respects recalls Newman's masterpiece, Ratzinger tells of his family life, the years of the Nazi oppression and of the war, his extraordinary academic path, and his participation in the Second Vatican Council. Illustrated.

"Here is Cardinal Ratzinger at his most surprising. Who imagines him a teenager risking his life escaping a Nazi forced-labor camp? Or a doctoral candidate shattered by rejection of his dissertation? Or a priest telling of 'the sufferings necessary for the priestly ministry . . . those dark nights that alone can give full shape to the radical assent a priest must give'? Milestones, rich with theological insights as are all his works, gives us finally Ratzinger the person. He is a joy to meet." -Cardinal John O'Connor, Archbishop of New York

"A very personal, compelling narrative of a life that continues to have inestimable influence in shaping the mission of the Catholic Church. A rare mix of candor and charity, this book is an opportunity to know personally one of the truly great figures of our time. It should not be missed."-Fr. Richard John Neuhaus, Editor, First Things

"A masterpiece of simplicity and clarity! It tells of the events of a life of inner depth and spiritual passion in the service of the Divine Truth." -Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, Author, Loving the Church

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The Ratzinger Report

Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger with Vittorio Messori

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Cardinal Ratzinger speaks candidly and forcefully about the state of the Church in the Post-Vatican II era. Here is the complete text of a meeting many have called a "historical turnabout" in the Church. The roots of the crisis that has troubled Catholics in the twenty years since the Council are analyzed with forthright clarity by one of the most authoritative voices in the Vatican. Here is a clear and uncompromising report on the dangers that threaten the Faith, from one who every day receives the most reliable information from every continent. Yet Ratzinger's observations are as hopeful and balanced as they are clear-sighted, forcefully re-affirming the immense and positive work of Vatican II, whose genuine fruits this book provides a guideline for achieving.

Are liturgy and prayer important in an age of political crisis and the technological manipulation of human life? Yes, declares Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI. Genuine worship of God involves the sacred liturgy and prayer. Only if man authentically worships God will true human dignity be protected, and the principles and the power to resolve the crises of our age be found.

The Feast of Faith sets out to answer one basic question: How can we pray and praise God as we should? Written before Cardinal Ratzinger became Pope, this timeless book reflects enduring and inspirational insights regarding divine worship and the sacred liturgy.

paperback, Pages: 175

In this profound and illuminating work, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger turns the gaze of an accomplished theologian upon the crucified Savior. This synthetic and meditative work is theological without being abstract or dry, and spiritual without being sentimental. The pierced heart of Christ must be the heart of theology and Christian life as well.

Proceeding from the prayerful dialogue between the Incarnate Son and his Eternal Father, Joseph Ratzinger shows how one can approach the mystery of the Heart of Christ only through the imitation of this prayer. To know and understand Jesus we must participate in his prayer. The prayer of Christ must be the interior life of all who are joined to him in his Body, the Church. Using the Old and New Testaments and the Church Fathers, Ratzinger shows that the ecclesial community (the Church) was born from the pierced Heart of Christ on the Cross.

Paperback

Gospel, Catechesis, Catechism

Sidelights on the Catechism of the Catholic Church

Author: Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger

Ratzinger, one of the key persons responsible for the compilation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, offers new insights on the catechetical character and Biblical foundation of the worldwide bestselling Catechism that has had such a positive response from ordinary Catholics across the globe. But he acknowledges that the response of many theologians and "professional religionists" has been negative toward the Catechism. He says that if theologians don't want to be "shut out" of this worldwide development of sensus fidei and lose touch with the common Catholic, they will have to engage the Catechism positively. The main purpose of this book is to offer an invitation to this changed approach to the Catechism. He wants people to see, as he shows here, how the Catechism is an excellent teaching tool that responds to man's deepest questions about the meaning of life, how to live a good life, and how to attain happiness in this life and in eternal life. He shows how the Catechism affirms that man's happiness is love, and that the essence of true love has been manifested in the Person of Jesus Christ. "This modern Father of the Church offers us a rare insight into how the Catechism was written and, therefore, how it ought to be interpreted. It is eminently readable while never sacrificing precision of thought or language."- Rev. Peter M. J. Stravinskas, Editor, The Catholic Answer

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Introduction to the Catechism of the Catholic Church

Authors: Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger and Bishop Christoph Schonborn

This is a valuable introduction to the Catechism by the general editor of the Catechism (Schonborn) and the head of the Bishops Commission for the implementation of the Catechism (Ratzinger). Providing helpful insights on how to read and study the Catechism, this book includes a prehistory of the Catechism, an overview of its structure and contents, the major themes and methods in it, a special introduction to the four parts of the Catechism, and specific advice on how to use the Catechism. Ratzinger and Schonborn illuminate the Catechism's teaching on faith, morals, prayer and sacraments, and how a Catholic lives those teachings in today's world.

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The Meaning of Christian Brotherhood

Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger

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Written over three decades ago, Cardinal Ratzinger's profound treatise on the true meaning of Christian brotherhood is perhaps even more timely and important now as a clear statement on the biblical grounds for cooperation among believing Christians. In treating Christian brotherhood from the perspective of salvation history, Ratzinger opens up the meaning of both the Old and New Testament in this most essential area. After establishing the distinctively Christian sense of brotherhood (vis-á-vis Judaism, Hellenism, Stoicism, the Enlightenment, and Marxism), he shows how fraternal charity can only be perfected through God's fatherhood, Christ's divine sonship, and our brotherhood in Christ.

"The timely republication of this work opens up vistas that have been obscured recently by controversy and confusion. Cardinal Ratzinger's treatment of election and rejection is like reading the surprising solution of a mystery story. This work is even more meaningful now when disunity leads to deep conflict within the Church." -- Benedict J. Groeschel, C.F.R., Author, The Reform of Renewal

"Highly commended as a synthesis of ecumenism. It explains the author's lifelong emphasis on what unites the followers of Christ, rather than what divides them as `separated brethren.' With no compromise of Catholic principles, it explains how `the two communities--Catholic and Protestant' are to `regard each other as sisters in the Lord ... and individual Christians on both sides as brothers to each other.'" -- John Hardon, S.J., Author, The Catholic Catechism

"Having read this book many times, I have found it to be invaluable in understanding the message of Scripture, the significance of the Catholic Church and Ratzinger's theology. He has captured the very heart and soul of Scripture." -- Scott Hahn, University of Steubenville

JOHN PAUL II - THE ENCYCLICALS

With the addition of John Pauls final encyclical, Ecclesia de Eucharistia (""The Church of the Eucharist"") what has been a popular book in its first two editions now becomes an indispensable reference. Joseph Donders has rendered John Paul IIs complex thought into a form that non-theologians can appreciate. Whether for group study or individual reading, John Paul II: The Encyclicals in Everyday Language offers clergy, religious, and lay readers the opportunity to explore and understand John Pauls wide-ranging legacy to the Church.

In his new Epilogue, Donders reflects on the legacy of this extraordinary figure whose recent passing was marked and mourned by millions, Christian and non-Christian alike.

Joseph G. Donders (1929-2013) was a member of the Missionaries of Africa and served in Kenya for 15 years, teaching first at the seminary and then University of Nairobi where he also served as Chaplain. In 1984 he became the first director of the Africa Faith and Justice Network based in Washington, DC. He was professor of mission studies at The Washington Theological Union from 1988 until his retirement in 2010.

Pages: 400

Binding: Softcover

THE THEOLOGY OF THE BODY - MADE SIMPLE