Popes in conflict, book claims
A converted monastery in the Vatican gardens is the tranquil haven to which Pope Benedict XVI retired nine years ago, but it has also become the centre of an ideological battle that has undermined the papacy of his successor and split the Roman Catholic Church.
After Benedict became the first pontiff in six centuries to relinquish his office, Pope Francis described his predecessor as a ‘‘wise grandfather’’ whose presence and advice were a blessing. Benedict, now 95, treated Francis, 85, with deference, insisting there was only one Pope and he would assist him by becoming invisible and silent.
The slow deterioration of this relationship and its consequences for the church are the subject of a new book by Massimo Franco, of the Corriere della Sera newspaper.
Franco describes the breakdown, which has led to open hostilities between the two papal courts.
‘‘As long as Jorge Mario Bergoglio [Francis] felt strong and confident of controlling the course of his visionary and rather chaotic reforms, Benedict was invited to speak, to be present at the most important ceremonies; in effect to provide a joint management of the papacy,’’ Franco writes. Joseph Ratzinger [Benedict], renowned for his intellectual rigour, would provide the theological legitimacy that Francis lacked and reassure anxious conservatives.
However, as conservatives and progressives diverged over Francis’ modernisation programme, Benedict began to be seen as ‘‘almost as a counterweight to the doctrine of the Argentine Pope’’, eventually becoming a beacon of resistance for Francis’ traditionalist enemies.
Franco traces the rift to a bungled attempt to secure Benedict’s endorsement for an 11-volume collection of books intended to bolster Francis’ standing as a theologian. The initiative in 2018, five years into the pontificate, backfired when Benedict refused to write an introduction, irritated that some of the authors had been critics of his papacy.
Things went from bad to worse when it emerged the Vatican’s head of communications had doctored photographs to eliminate words revealing Benedict’s displeasure. Francis reluctantly accepted the resignation of Monsignor Dario Vigano, the man responsible for the fiasco and one of his most trusted aides.
Further doctrinal differences emerged when Benedict co-wrote a book with a Francis critic, insisting on the need for priests to remain celibate as Francis was debating the possibility of ordaining married men to respond to a shortage of vocations in the Amazon region.
Conflict over doctrine had already emerged in 2017 when Francis dismissed Cardinal Gerhard
Muller as head of the Vatican’s doctrinal watchdog.
Appointed by Benedict, Muller described his removal as ‘‘a blow against Benedict, more than against myself’’. He described a climate in the Vatican where loyal priests were arbitrarily dismissed on the basis of anonymous letters.
Robert Mickens, editor of La Croix International, a Catholic newspaper, said Benedict had attempted to tie his successor’s hands by appointments made in the closing days of his papacy, including Muller’s.
‘‘Ratzinger is a polarising figure, he always has been. He allowed people to rally around him who didn’t like Francis,’’ Mickens said. ‘‘He chose a path of selfimposed silence, which he decided all on his own, but he broke the rule almost immediately.’’
An experienced Vatican watcher, who asked not to be named, said: ‘‘These are two popes who can’t stand one another.’’ –