Ratzinger's Faith: The Theology of Pope Benedict XVI Book

A popular reading of Joseph Ratzinger (Benedict XVI) is that he started out as a progressive but had second thoughts after the culturalrevolution of the late 1960s. A more negative portrait is that of anambitious and intellectually precocious young man who changedtheological allegiances for the sake of promotion within the Catholichierarchy. Now, in this probing book, Tracey Rowland offers athird reading, one that situates the thought of Pope Benedict withinthe intellectual history and academic circles of his time. The firstserious assessment of the new Pope s theological vision, thisthoughtful volume covers topics such as the interpretations of theSecond Vatican Council, Pope Benedict s relations with other importantscholars and theologians, and his attitudes on moral and politicaltheology, western culture, the structure of the Catholic Church,liturgy, and love. It has become a commonplace observation that PopeBenedict has been influenced by the thought of St. Augustine incontrast to many of his predecessors in the papacy who were much morestrongly influenced by St. Thomas Aquinas. This work thereforeaddresses the topic of in what way Benedict is an Augustinian. Thevolume also includes a bibliography arranged thematically for those whowant to explore his thought more deeply in a particular area.Apenetrating account of the thought of the reigning pontiff, this volumeoffers a wealth of insight for everyone interested in Pope Benedict andthe direction of the modern Catholic Church. Distributor: Spring Arbor/Ingram Author: Tracey Rowland Format: 224 pages, hardcover ISBN: 9780199207404