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Pope Benedict XVI Quotes
1927–2022 Germany
Pope Benedict XVI (born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 1 January 2023) was a prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as pope occurred in the 2005 papal conclave that followed the death of Pope John Paul II on 2 April 2005.
Germany Academics Non-fiction authors Philosophers Theologians Also known as: Benedict XVI, Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, Joseph Ratzinger, Ratzinger
Random Pope Benedict XVI quote
83 quotes
If technical progress is not matched by corresponding progress in man's ethical formation, in man's inner growth, then it is not progress at all, but a threat for man and for the world.
I too hope in this short reign to be a man of peace.
Indeed, truth draws strength from itself and not from the number of votes in its favour.
Truth draws strength from itself and not from the number of votes in its favour.
One must not fear truth, because it is a friend of man and of his freedom
Multiculturalism, which is so constantly and passionately promoted, can sometimes amount to an abandonment and denial, a flight from one's own heritage.
Without Roots: The West, Relativism, Christianity, Islam (2006)
Nature expresses a design of love and truth.
Cartias in Vertitate (2009)
Celibacy is not a matter of compulsion. Someone is accepted as a priest only when he does it of his own accord.
Salt of the Earth (1997)
By reminding us of human finitude and weakness, religion also enjoins us not to place our ultimate hope in this passing world.
Inter-religious Meeting (2008)
The Kingdom of God comes by way of a listening heart.
Through the Spirit's action may the young people gathered here have the courage to become saints! This is what the world needs more than anything else.
Pray for me, that I may not flee for fear of the wolves.
Europe, unlike America, is on a collision course with its own history. Often it voices an almost visceral denial of any possible public dimension for Christian values.
Without Roots: The West, Relativism, Christianity, Islam (2006)
The ways of the Lord are not comfortable, but we were not created for comfort, but for greatness, for good.
Charity without faith is meaningless, and faith without charity remains a dead letter.
Unlimited trust should only be placed in the real Word of the Revelation that we encounter in the faith transmitted by the Church.
I think the essential point is a weakness of faith.
In the hour of its greatest success, Europe seems to have become empty inside, paralyzed by a life-threatening crisis to its health and dependent on transplants.
Values in Times of Upheaval (2005)
How much filth there is in the Church, even among those who, in the priesthood, should belong entirely to Him. How much pride, how much self-sufficiency.
I would not like to use big words to apply generic labels. It certainly contains elements that can favor peace, it also has other elements: we must always seek the best elements.
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