next time we will see you in heaven. He will be irreplaceable»- Corriere.it

«Next time we’ll see you in heaven“, She said Blessed greeting him.

It was last October 15, the last time that Peter Seewald met the Pope Emeritus at Mater Ecclesiae. Former communist and journalist of Der SpiegelSeewald accompanied Joseph Ratzinger for over twenty-five years, becoming his biographer and establishing a deep personal and intellectual bond with him, which prompted him to revise his beliefs.

What is the memory you keep of that last meeting with Benedetto?

“He was in pain. She had been in a wheelchair for some time, her voice was barely intelligible. But the spirit was still awake. You conveyed a great sadness for what is happening in Europe, the war and the situation of the Church. I asked him, Pope Benedict, why hasn’t he met death yet? He replied that he felt he had to remain, as a witness of what he represented, a sign of his direction, of Christ’s message, of the will to strengthen the awareness of the faith and above all not to think of adulterations and structural changes ».

Are you surprised that ten years after his resignation as Pope, spent in the shadows, his death has aroused so much emotion in millions of people?

“In no way. On the contrary. Despite the many criticisms, especially in Germany of him, I expected it. He is the most read theologian of the contemporary age, each of his books on Jesus has a circulation of over 13 million copies. Symposia about him are held all over the world. Some see in him always the Panzerkardinal and the identification of regression, but the majority revere him as a saint, a beacon of Catholicism, an icon of orthodoxy. We must also remember that his work was already great and significant before the Pontificate. The whole world is losing an extraordinary personality.”

You maintain that Benedict wrote history. Are you thinking about his resignation from the Pontificate or something else? What were his merits?

«They already began as a young theologian, when he brought a new tone to the Annunciation, a return to the roots of the Catholic faith, a rebirth and a new discovery of the Father. His participation in the Second Vatican Council was fundamental and is often underestimated. Without Ratzinger there would have been no Council in the form we know. Even the defense of his authentic results belongs to Ratzinger’s merits. To this defense he dedicated his life, fighting with courage. Last but not least, for 25 years he was John Paul II’s greatest support in rejecting attacks on Church dogmas, regardless of his personal popularity. Anyone who speaks only of his resignation has short sightedness. Of course, this too was a historic and necessary act, but the greatest service rendered by Benedict is in his catechesis with countless publications, speeches, encyclicals, theological texts. This will stand the test of time and is a gift to the Church today.”

But how do you explain the many criticisms and prejudices that have always accompanied him?

“From the very beginning there have been conflicts over the true interpretation of the Council. Untrue opinions were attributed to Joseph Ratzinger, he was accused of being a traitor, a renegade who had turned from a progressive theologian into a conservative. It’s nonsense. He was against changes that have nothing to do with Catholicism. He has always said “we need renewal in conservation”, therefore conservation through renewal. So he goes to the heart of theology, without questioning what is eternal. For this he has become a bogeyman. It is a fact that with his works, his great intelligence and theological strength of him was so important that his enemies have never tired of attacking him. And I fear it will be like this in the future as well».

What do you think of the “reactionary” definition often used for Benedict?

«There are not two Ratzingers, there is only one: a theologian who practices theology not against but with the Church. To write his biography, I interviewed more than a hundred people who know him, went to school with him, studied under him, worked with him or for him. And as a journalist who accompanied him for almost 30 years, I am convinced that this definition is wrong. Of course, he was not as emotional as John Paul II or as Francis himself. Benedict has a charisma of him. I knew him as a very humble person, a brilliant thinker who knows how to unravel complicated things, who comes to meet people, who loves them, who placed himself at the service of the Church throughout his life even if he had other plans: he always saw himself as theologian. He didn’t even want to become bishop of Monaco and several times as prefect of the Congregation for the doctrine of the faith he offered his resignation ».

As bishop of Monaco he was accused by an independent inquiry of knowing and covering up at least four cases of sexual abuse. Is it a valid accusation?

“It’s unfair. You focus on a man, already defined bogeyman. But in hindsight, too little has always been done. However, Ratzinger already as prefect had tackled the issue head-on, saying that it was necessary to clarify instead of hiding, arresting the guilty, helping the victims. A line that he continued as Pope, he was the first Pontiff to apologise, we recall the warning during the Via Crucis of 2005 about how much dirt there is in the Church, even among those who belong to it. He suspended 400 priests from service. As for the expert report that accuses him, it is a private expert report, there is no proof that Ratzinger as bishop of Munich was involved in the single case that is contested against him. The truth, as my Italian colleague Gianluigi Nuzzi wrote, is that Benedict “has removed the mantle of silence and forced his Church to look the victims in the face.” He has met them on every journey, it is something that was very close to his heart. It was the greatest pain of his life. He was ashamed. I still remember his touching words about the victims in Ireland.’

What was Ratzinger the man like?

“Not easy to explain. He always kept a certain distance, he wasn’t someone you pat on the back with. He had a certain strong nobility. But he was capable of listening more than anyone else I know, not at all vain unlike many prelates, cordial, compassionate. He had a clear, sharp mind, but he also had his feet on the ground, he never forgot where he came from and always defended even the faith of the simple against the cold religion of many of his colleagues. He was a humble and unpretentious man. Especially in the years as Pope Emeritus, when he always avoided any criticism of his successor, there was always the perception that in front of Pope Francis was a saint. Benedict will be irreplaceable for the future of the Church”.

Why did he resign as Pope?

“He was exhausted, physically. He believed his pontificate would last two or three years. He gave himself in full. He was the first Pope who, despite the heaviness of his office, wrote a Christology. There are no other reasons for his resignation, no blackmail as speculated. In his last letter he told me again, in a non-public way, how sick he was, not only in his eyes but also in his heart. He had a pacemaker. He couldn’t continue. But I also think that he consciously wanted to set a point for the papacy of modernity. It was a long overdue step. He thought about it for a long time, he questioned Christ. He weighed the question not only in all intellectual directions but also in harmony with Christ, whose vicar he represented on earth.’

(Collaborated with Christina Ciszek)