The Ratz Is Back, Stung by Atheist into Addressing the 'Deviance' and 'Filth' in His Church, by Barry Duke, The Freethinker, September 25, 2013

The Ratz Is Back, Stung by Atheist into Addressing the 'Deviance' and 'Filth' in His Church

By Barry Duke
The Freethinker
September 25, 2013

http://freethinker.co.uk/2013/09/25/the-ratz-is-back-stung-by-atheist-into-addressing-the-deviance-and-filth-in-his-church/

Ratzinger responds to Odifreddi

IN A letter to Italian atheist mathematician Piergiorgio Odifreddi, the Vatican’s shadow Pope Ratzinger has vigorously defended his handling of allegations of sexual abuse of minors by Catholic clergy – and “politely” criticised the logician’s total reliance on scientific facts for The Meaning of Life.

Ratzinger deplored the fact that Odifreddi had depicting the Church as the only place where such “deviation” and “filth” occurred. And where they did occur in the Church:

I never sought to conceal these things.

According to this report, the publication of the retired Pope’s leter to the atheist scholar on September 24 came in the same month as a letter written by Pope Number One – Frankie – to an Italian journalist concerning dialogue with non-believers. Both letters were published, with the two Popes’ permission, by the Italian daily La Repubblica.

The newspaper released long excerpts of Pope Benedict’s original 11-page response to Odifreddi, a prolific science writer who authored the book, Dear Pope, I Write to You in 2011.

The book, presented as a letter to Pope Benedict, proposed the superiority of a worldview in which belief should stem only from things that can be understood and empirically known over worldviews that include belief in things that cannot be fully understood or known.

The Pope’s response, dated August 30, thanked Odifreddi for seeking to juxtapose his ideas against the Pope’s own writings “and, thus, with my faith”.

But Ratzinger said he met “with deep dismay” Odifreddi’s unspecified comments about the clerical abuse scandals and denied trying to cover up allegations.

That the power of evil seeps all the way into the inner world of the faith is a source of suffering for us. Not only must the church bear the burden of this evil, but it also must do everything possible so that such cases never repeat themselves.

He said that just as it is wrong “to be silent about the evil in the church,” it is wrong to remain silent about the good, holy and loving service the church has offered, he said.

Ratzinger said he read Odifreddi’s book:

With pleasure and benefit.

However, he also offered some sharp criticisms of Odifreddi’s arguments as well as his:

Neglect of and lack of explanation for very real and observable phenomena such as love, liberty and evil.

He took issue with Odifreddi’s view that theology is nothing but “science fiction” and suggested instead that the term could be more accurately used to describe Odifreddi’s own worldview.

I would define (Odifreddi’s thoughts on this) as science fiction in the good sense of the word – they are views and forecasts in order to reach real understanding, but they are, in fact, only (products of) imagination with which we try to get closer to reality.

The retired Pope said one of the things the two men have in common is a belief in a First Cause to the universe, only Odifreddi replaces God with “Nature” as the origin.

Concerning Odifreddi’s “religion of mathematics,” the Pope said nowhere does this belief system consider three major human realities:

Freedom, love and evil.

The Pope also gave Odifreddi some recommended readings to address the mathematician’s doubts about being able to know anything for certain about the historical figure of Jesus.

Just because there is shoddy research out there “doesn’t compromise the importance of serious historical research,” which has brought real and certain knowledge about the figure of Jesus, the Pope said.

He added that “historical-critical exegesis is necessary for faith, which doesn’t propose myths” out of historical figures and events, but demands a history that is based on truth and facts, and presents such findings with scientific rigour.

All of my efforts have been aimed at showing how the Jesus described in the Gospels is also the real historical Jesus; that it is history that has really taken place.

The Pope ended his letter admitting he may have been harsh in some of his criticisms, but that

Frankness is part of dialogue.