Benedict Books

This is not a complete story, not a complete documentary, not a complete analysis, not a complete history, not a complete anything. The author doesn't seem to have a purpose except to write a book about the Karen people. It includes brief excerpts from some of their history; it includes brief descriptions about some of their culture; it includes brief descriptions about some Karen people and some people who work with and for them.

It's not even a summary of history or culture or their situation. It's merely brief snapshots of parts, and like the blindman who merely feels the elephant's trunk, one cannot get a complete grasp on what is the Karen people.

Nevertheless, these snapshots are awesome and tremendously interesting. The author paints the Karen people as a very interesting minority culture in Burma. It leaves the reader with an admiration if not love of these people and a desire to know more but also a desire to visit this land.

So many history books are written by the powerful and tell the story of the powerful. We know about Napolean, Washington, kings and queens. This book tells the story of regular old folks who live, love and unfortunately suffer in a beautiful land.

"This life of Roger Williams easily takes top rank among biographies for young people. Written with deep conviction of the importance of Williams' philosophy, its purpose never clogs the action. Has vitality and beauty" - Publisher's Weekly

This is a beautiful little gem of a book. There is much food in it for meditaton for anyone who wants to understand the role of the Virgin Mary in the Church. As always, Benedict XVI sheds light beautifully and succinctly on whatever he chooses to teach.

"We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth?" (Jn: 1.45)


Beholders of God:
The Johannine Christ has been claimed to be both the most human (Son of man, Prophet) and the divine (One with the father) representations given by all four evangelists. The comparison with the prophetic office of Moses is very clear in the Church of Alexandria, established early by the Jewish Therapeutae who believed St. Mark's preaching of Jesus the expected Messiah. Mark's own special title, preserved in the Coptic rite, is "St. Mark, the Beholder of God," which makes of the evangelist a parallel to Moses, with regard to the direct divine revelation of the truth of the gospel, which replaced the Law.

Moses' Law and Christ's Gospel:
The New Testament places the law of Moses and the gospel of Jesus Christ in a typological continuum. So far from contrasting Jesus and Moses in any absolute fashion, New Testament writers clearly portray Jesus as the new and greater Moses. In Jesus, the person and work of Moses are perfected and escalated. Jesus is the prophet like Moses that God promised to send his people. His cross accomplishes a greater exodus (Lk. 9:31), rescuing the covenant people from sin and death (the greater Pharaoh). Jesus in the church, fulfills the typology of the tabernacle and sacrifice that Moses devised. Matthew's entire gospel revolves around the theme of Jesus, the fulfillment of Moses' ministry. Other gospels combine with Matthew in echoing Mosaic themes as well: Both Moses and Jesus are delivered from Egypt (Ex. 1-2 and Mt. 1-2), both escape the bloody plot of a tyrant in their infancy (Pharaoh and Herod), both survive the wilderness (Moses for forty years, Jesus for forty days), growing in wisdom (Acts 7:22 with Lk. 2:52) Jesus issued blessings and Moses curses from a mountain (Dt. 28 and Mt. 5:1), both demonstrated signs and wonders and were transfigured on a mountain. Both presented Israel with a choice between two ways (Dt. 30:1& Mt. 7:24-27), performed sea crossings and wilderness feedings (Ex. 14 & Jn. 6:15) While Moses provided manna from heaven and water from the rock Jesus gave bread to the multitudes and wine in Cana , his first miracle (mentioned only by John)

Moses and Jesus:
a. Moses is one of the chief witnesses to Jesus, there is no polemic against Moses, but rather no comparison. Catholic NT Scholars ascribes the importance of the Moses-theme as opposed to the Davidic-Messiah-theme to the Samaritan tradition in Jn, since the Samaritans rejected the Davidic Messiah and concentrated on Moses the Prophet.
b. Jesus is the Prophet whom Moses prophesied about, announced in Dt 18.18: 'we have found him of whom Moses wrote in the Law' (1.45). The two crucified with Jesus are in Jn not called thieves, but are simply one on either side, as the supporters of Moses as he prayed to save his people in battle This is popular opinion, is the same theme of speaking not of himself but as God sent him (Jn 8.28; 12.49-50), to speak God's Word; he brings life, as Moses did (Dt 30.19-20; Jn 5.24); he works signs, especially three numbered signs, to occasion belief (Ex 4.1-9; Jn 2.1-11.)
c. Jesus' gift is superior to that of Moses. The Law through Moses, grace and truth through Jesus Christ (1.18). Moses gave bread in the desert, but Jesus is the true Bread from Heaven (6); he gave water from the Rock, but Jesus is the living water. In chapter 7 the emphasis is on teaching: Jesus completes the Law, which Moses taught only partially. The Jews must finally make a choice between being followers of Moses or of Jesus (9.28.) Moses, therefore, is one of the chief means by which John shows who Jesus is, or what he means.


Moses Vs Jesus Studies:
There has been a big number of studies on the fourth Gospel of which few have chosen Boismard's venue. He is a leading Johannine scholar who emphasized "the prophet-like-Moses who is Divine Wisdom, his Christology is provocative though biblical. Even for christology readers, this book represents a challenging reading. The late Fr. Raymond Brown, SS, a Johannine Expert himself, wrote; "Boismard is one of the premier Johannine scholars of this century."

* Thomas, Cherian. Jesus the New Moses: A Christological Understanding of the Fourth Gospel. Ph.D. Thesis: Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, 1987.
* Harstine, Stanley Dwight. The Functions of Moses as a Character in the Fourth Gospel and the Responses of Three Ancient Mediterranean Audiences. Ph.D. Thesis: Baylor University, 1999.

Fr. Apostoli, a frequent host on the Eternal Word Television Network, demonstrates his ability to present a complicated topic with clarity and depth. His first two chapters are rich with scriptural references on the mission of Jesus. Next, we learn of the Holy Spirit's mission as implied in Jesus' promise to the apostles that "another Paraclete" would come and be their advocate forever. The role of the second Paraclete, according to scripture, consists of witnessing on Jesus' behalf; proving the world wrong about sin, justice, and condemnation; and "guiding you in all truth."

In later chapters the author addresses the Spirit's guidance of pastors and the laity. The laity, he explains, share the threefold mission of Jesus. The lay interpretation of Jesus' priestly role is primarily to pray and to offer "spiritual sacrifices," in their daily activities and relationships. The laity participate in Jesus' kingly office by imitating Him and serving others as He did. Finally, lay persons are called to the prophetic office through giving witness directly and by example; recognizing truth and error in matters of faith and morals; and exercising "the grace of the word," being open to God's word and sharing it with others.

In his introduction to "Paraclete," Fr. Benedict Groeschel writes, "You can never get too much on the Holy Spirit." Fr, Apostoli proves him right in this new work, which would be a useful resource for bible study and faith sharing groups.

This volume of Plutarch's Moralia describes the legend and cult of Isis and Osiris, as referred to by my book Vampires or Gods? It is a very interesting look at a major cult during the late imperial period of the Roman Empire. - William Meyers

As he explains in his Introduction, Fr. Twomey's short book is a collection of priorly published articles (some revised here) that endeavor to educate the reader about Pope Benedict XVI on several levels:

-- Included are an overview of the voluminous writings of Joseph Ratzinger/Pope Benedict that is more a listing than anything more comprehensive. The main text and numerous footnotes point to further reading in the source texts rather than going into detail. This abbreviation is frustrating at times; one wishes to follow up on the references, but who reading an introduction such as this would have the many cited works at hand?

-- Unlike some other contemporary theologians, Ratzinger himself has compiled a body of literature that is "unfinished." Twomey often makes reference to the tendency of Ratzinger to write unfinished "fragments" that toss out ideas with the intention that others join in and carry on the discourse.

-- Twomey, who has known the pope since he was a student of Professor Ratzinger over thirty years ago offers added insights into his teacher's character. For instance, Twomey emphasizes Ratzinger's classroom encouragement of frank, open discussion (a trait companionable to the tendency to write theology fragments that stimulate expansion).

-- Three chapters (out of five) of "Pope Benedict XVI: The Conscience of Our Age: A Theological Portrait" investigate Ratzinger/Benedict's theory of conscience which Twomey advises is not merely the popular narrow definition that might be termed an "excuse mechanism." Instead the pope concerns himself with a broader sense of conscience as alignment with higher, divine truth.

-- Indeed, the pope's own search for truth is an abiding theme of his life and therefore of Twomey's book. In concert with that, one chapter considers the question of Ratzinger's youth in Nazi Germany which had been a common topic in the news media upon his election to the papacy. Twomey systematically discounts accusations that Ratzinger was a willing participant in the Hitler Youth. Ratzinger found no truth in Nazism.

-- One of the two appendices consists of a sermon Pope Benedict gave in 2005. It provides a notable glimpse into the way he integrates various ideas to provide fresh windows of thought. The homily also happens to refer to the American priestly sex scandals, making it of further interest.

Although Twomey's brief introduction is definitely a series of fragments itself, it succeeds in piquing interest in further reading and so is recommended for those interested in understanding Pope Benedict and his scholarship and character.

I am a little disappointed with this book. It is too short to cover the lives of two contemporary spiritual figures. especially Pope John Paul II. I prefer to see two books. One one John Paul II and the other on Benedixt xvi. Given her writing skill if it is done that way, I am willing to give a rating 5.

If possible, this book is even better than the other two in the series (IN THE PRESENCE OF THE LORD and PRAYING IN THE PRESENCE OF THE LORD). Fr. Groeschel has an opening chapter of advice on "structuring" a holy hour with the Blessed Sacrament, and it alone is worth the price of the book. Then follow the inspiring quotations from a variety of saints, blesseds, venerables and servants of God that run the gamut from profound to beautifully simple, long to short, mind-boggling to down-to-earth. A beautiful vade mecum for those times when we want to be "alone with the Lord."

The subtitle is "The inside story of how the Pope was elected and where he will take the Catholic Church" and he pretty much delivers on this promise.

The opening chapter starts off with the context of the final months of the papacy of John Paul II. He looks as the health of John Paul II continues to decline and the reaction of those in the Vatican and others around him. Many with the ups and downs of the previous Pope's health over the years were not quite ready when his final days actually arrived. As John Paul II once quipped when a reporter had asked about his health he said that he didn't know since he had not yet read the papers. John L. Allen's writing as always is very good and he really pulls you back into these events. The emotions of this time came flooding back in me as I read his narrative.

The second chapter "The Funeral Effect" describe both Pope John Paul II's funeral and the overwhelming world reaction, but also how it attributed to the election of Pope Benedict XVI. He used this chapter and the following ones on the Interregnum and the Conclave to make the case for how Cardinal Ratzinger was elected. He makes the case using multiple factors of how this came about and I think the case he does make is pretty good. The Funeral Effect is a term used to describe how then-Cardinal Ratzinger's handling of the funeral in his homily really helped the Cardinal electors to see him handling himself in such a large crowd and important occasion. Most of the Cardinals probably never bought into the created media persona of Cardinal Ratzinger a tough as nails and cold personality that was portrayed so often. Most would have come to know him better on Ad Limina visits where often they would meet with him besides meeting the Pope. Though there were probably real questions of how this academic who really only wanted to retire (had asked JPII three times to retire as head of the CDF) and go home to mainly read and to write would handle the responsibilities as Pope. The massive world reaction to the death of JPII also made the Cardinal-electors really focus on the papacy itself and its importance.

Cardinal Ratzinger was the Dean of the Cardinals since Cardinal Gantin the previous dean had resigned at the age of age (though this was not mandatory). John Allen Jr. thinks this is perhaps the most important factor in his election since once again it put him in front of the other Cardinals during the Interregnum and the Conclave itself. No doubt this was an important factor since in many ways the world Cardinals really do not know all the other Cardinals very well. Gone are the day's when Italians dominated and Cardinals are much more spread out geographically now. Myself I think the most important factor in his election is the man himself. A world class theologian who while being totally orthodox could truly listen to others and this would be something the Cardinal-electors would be well aware of. Though Cardinal Ratzinger being dean more than likely really helped to move his election along faster than it might have. John Allen Jr. goes into many other factors that contributed to his election and I found most of them very interesting especially how a rule change for conclaves made by JPII likely contributed to Pope Benedict XVI being elected in just 4 ballots.

I really enjoyed these chapters on the Interregnum and Conclave and the number of valuable insights written in those pages. He never goes down to mere rumors and as he states any of the events in the Conclave himself he relied on at least two witnesses. Writing about conclaves is fairly difficult since the Cardinal-electors are sworn to secrecy and so much has to be patched together to give a picture of the events. When he writes about the election itself once again it really brought to mind that day to me.


The book then goes on to give a short biography of Josef Ratzinger and his years from childhood through his time as the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. He covers the various controversies over his time as prefect and the run ins he had with various theologians. I do think that the most incredible part of his 24 years with the CDF is really the small number of cases with only a hand full actually resulting in excommunication. This is only a short chapter and is only meant to cover the basics of this time period. For a fuller account see Let God's Light Shine Forth: The Spiritual Vision of Pope Benedict XVI Edited by Dr. Robert Moynihan.

The rest of the book concentrates on where he predicts that the Pope will lead the Church. He uses previous indicators in Josef Ratzinger's life along with current trends in society to predict where the Pope's leadership will focus. I think most of his guesses are pretty good and some of them have been born out since the book was first written. There is one blind spot in his predictions in that as far as I can remember he never addresses liturgy itself as far as predictions go. This is rather surprising since Cardinal Ratzinger is quite well know for his book Spirit of the Liturgy and other writings and speeches on this subject. That he is rather a vocal critic of some of the changes that were since, though not mandated by, the Second Vatican Council. It also seems to me that John Allen Jr. largely views the Pope through the smaller but more energetic Church model. This is of course something that Cardinal Ratzinger has spoken of before, but in my opinion (as an armchair Vatican )I don't think it dominates his thinking. Though that he will work to reduce the bureaucracy of the Curia itself is a prediction that is probably very good and there have been some signs of it.

Some bring up the fact that John Allen Jr. works for the National Catholic Reporter. kI am no fan of the NCReporter whose articles and editorials do not exactly fall in line with the magisterium and dissent is not exactly covered up. Guilt by association is an understandable reaction, though I have come to have quite a favorable opinion of his columns and the two books I have read of his. I think there is little doubt that he truly works to be balanced in his coverage and from what I have read over the years he has become better in his coverage. In the introduction to both of his books he brings up the subject that some conservative think him a flaming liberal and some liberal that he is a cold hearted conservative. That people parse his words for an indication as to where his true inclinations are.

I am guilty of doing exactly the same of looking for these indications. In the introduction to this book he mentions his previous book on Cardinal Ratzinger called "Cardinal Ratzinger: The Vatican's Enforcer of the Faith" has a title that by many accounts is a unbalanced view of the Cardinal. He mentions that Stephen hand of TCR took him to task for this book in a review of his book. John Allen Jr. himself writes "wrote a blistering review, not entirely undeserved." You have to give a lot of credence to anybody who can take a critical review and to admit that it was not entirely undeserved and I think his current book on Ratzinger has pretty much achieved a much sounder view. I haven't read the other book myself, but Christopher Blosser of the Cardinal Ratzinger Fan Club had called it "a good read overall" and wrote

Allen's prevalently liberal audience will be reassured by the fact that his praises for Ratzinger as a person fail to carry over to Ratzinger's role as doctrinal prefect. One doesn't have to read far to note that on every issue from contraception to women's ordination to liberation theology he comes down squarely opposed, and remains just as steadfast in his convictions as the cardinal is in his.

Christopher view pretty much coincides with my own reading of John Allen Jr's new book. That he has much personal respect for the Pope and his abilities himself, but that when it comes to doctrinal manners that respect does not follow through. The small chapter on his time as prefect of the CDF seemed to be balanced more towards defending the dissenters. He often used the term conservative to describe some of the people he quotes or refers to, yet liberal or progressive never seems to become a tag for those that could be clearly labled that way. One of the critiques of the book is that he brought up the case of Fr. Reese, former editor of American magazine, three times in the course of the book. Criticisms of this action were more heavily referenced and the defense for this was not given much room. Now I can understand how he might be a slightly touchy on this subject. The newspaper he works for makes America Magazine seem like Civiltà Cattolica by comparison. He could hardly agree with complaints about America Magazine articles which sometimes wants to present both sides of a settled question as if there can be balance between a magisterial teaching of the Church and other views. The contra to truth is not truth. I find it hard to understand how he could be willing to work for NCReporter if he actually felt that there heterodox doctrinal views were not credible. In the book he refers to Sister Joan Chittister a couple of times in reference to Pope Benedict without of course mentioning that she is a dissenter who works with his paper. Or that she has defied the Vatican by attending conferences on women's ordination when she was specifically told not to. He also seemed to mention that Sr. Chisttister was a Benedictine almost as many times as Nancy Pelosi mentions she is a grandmother or that John Kerry mentioned he was a Vietnam veteran during the election - okay I am exaggerating here.

I also found it rather funny when he was talking about the Pope's working towards bringing more Anglicans into the Church and that in a couple of places he referred to Anglican converts as dissenting Anglicans. I guess that is technically correct, but I can't remember anybody ever referring to those who have now come home into the fullness of the faith as dissenters and at one point he included both Anglicans and Evangelicals who do this as dissenting.

He also refers to a Philip Jenkins as an American Catholic writer. Though the mistake is understandable since the professor has written books such as The New Anti-Catholism and this and other of his works is much used by Catholics, though he is in fact an Episcopalian.

One of my favorite quotes of then-Cardinal Ratzinger in the book is from 1997 where he said "This is His Church, and not a laboratory for theologians." John Allen in reference to the quote gave it as evidence for his being acerbic at times and that this particular quote "he snapped."

Regardless though of what might be the actual doctrinal views of John Allen Jr, I don't think that the relatively minor instances I detailed mar this book to any great extent and of course I could be totally wrong in my interpretation of what he writes. I can easily recommend this book to anybody who wants to read on Pope Benedict's election and what its aftermath will hold. He has a wealth of knowledge and had developed a wealth of contacts that make he writing very rich with information.