Politi: Joseph Ratzinger should not have been elected pope

Josef Ratzinger was not supposed to become the head of the Catholic Church, and he could leave the position already in the spring of 2012.

That in his latest book "Josef Ratzinger. The crisis of a papacy" writes Vaticanist Marko Politi, a journalist of the newspaper "Fatto Quotidiano", as reported by the Croatian Večernji list.

In his book, Politi listed numerous mistakes committed by Benedict XVI during his pontificate. Also, the Italian journalist reflected on the way Ratzinger was elected in 2005, with a majority of conservative votes.

"John Paul II, after almost a thousand years, introduced new rules for holding the conclave in 1996. Namely, he established the possibility that after a certain number of rounds of voting, where the necessary two-thirds support for the election of the new pope is achieved, it can be switched to an election with - more than half support.

In this case, that voting mechanism enabled church conservatives to elect Ratzinger. In the event that voting was done according to the rules that were in force until then (ie, according to the two-thirds majority rule), he would never have been elected.

Ratzinger, now as Pope Benedict XVI, sealed that rule. The group of cardinals who supported him had no vision of the relationship between the Church and contemporary society," Politi claims.

He angered Muslims with inappropriate statements about Islam, and he revoked the excommunication of Bishop Williamson, who denies the Holocaust, thereby straining relations with Jews.

Benedict XVI, Politi further claims, committed several gaffes. He angered Muslims with inappropriate statements about Islam, and he revoked the excommunication of Bishop Richard Williamson, who denies the Holocaust, thus straining relations with Jews.

In addition, the aforementioned head did almost nothing in terms of the fight against pedophilia within his own Church.

"A large number of Catholics see no basis for the persistent demonization of homosexual relationships. Also, many believers do not have much understanding for the fact that women in the Church exclusively perform the duties of servants, without the opportunity to participate in making important decisions.

And with regard to artificial insemination, the Vatican's dictates are far from reality," Politi comments on the Church's stance on extremely important events in social reality, and emphasizes how "Benedict XVI negates the conclusions of the Second Vatican Council with such attitudes."

While serving as a cardinal, Ratzinger called for tolerance towards homosexuals, while now, as pope, he insists that homosexuality is an "unnatural state".

While serving as a cardinal, Ratzinger called for tolerance towards homosexuals, while now, as pope, he insists that homosexuality is an "unnatural state".

Politi, as a good connoisseur of the life and works of Jozef Ratzinger, characterized the pope as a person who is not as rigid in his private life as he appears to be in public.

As a cardinal, he believed that if a priest falls in love with a woman and believes that they can be a solid couple, then it is right for him to follow that path. But Ratzinger also has the temperament of a recluse and, according to Politi, he does not have the gift for the leader of an institution that has one billion and one hundred million believers.

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