Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as the new pope Wednesday, April 20, but others expressed reservations about a man who was once part of the Hitler Youth during World War Two. The wartime past of Ratzinger, who will be known as Pope Benedict XVI, was a source of controversy in some newspapers which probed the German pontiff’s past, after Pope John Paul II died, and he quickly became a frontrunner for the top job, Reuters news agency reported from Berlin.
However his biographers say he was never a member of the Nazi party and his family opposed Adolf Hitler’s regime. Jewish human rights group, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, have also recognised Ratzinger’s anti-Nazi roots.
"The new Pope, like his predecessor, was deeply influenced by the events of World War Two. As a child, Pope Benedict XVI grew up in an anti-Nazi family. Nonetheless, he was forced to join the Hitler Youth movement," Reuters qouted the group as saying.
ANTI-AIRCRAFT
Ratzinger, who turned 16 in 1943, served in an anti-aircraft defense unit with other students at the seminary where he was studying. A year later, he was summoned to the military, yet avoided being enrolled into the SS, the Nazi’s elite troops, he says, by declaring his intention of becoming a priest.
Reuters quoted Biographer John Allen as saying that Ratzinger was sent to Austria’s border with Hungary to erect tank traps before he returned to Bavaria and deserted.
"Hitler’s death finally strengthened our hope that things would soon end. The unhurried manner of the American advance, however, deferred more and more the day of liberation. At the end of April or the beginning of May — I do not remember precisely — I decided to go home," Ratzinger wrote, according to Reuters.
AMERICANS STATIONED
He arrived to find the Americans had stationed themselves in the Ratzinger home and spent the next six weeks in a U.S. prisoner of war camp before his release in June 1945. He and his brother began studying for the priesthood in Munich in 1946.
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder stressed it was a great honor for the whole country that the first German to head the Catholic Church was chosen after nearly 1000 years.
“Like everywhere in the world millions of worshippers in Germany were waiting for the outcome of the conclave," he said in a statement. "In Germany we are filled with a lot of happiness and some pride that a national has been elected Pope. Not only the Catholic, but also the Protestants, Orthodox, Jews the Muslims and Buddhists, and even those who do not identify with a single religion were looking to Rome. There are high expectations for Benedict XVI," Schroeder added.
POLAND PLEASED
In Poland, home of Pope John Paul II, many Catholics reportedly also welcomed the choice of Cardinal Ratzinger saying he would follow the teachings of his predecessor. Parliament in the overwhelmingly Roman Catholic nation suspended its session immediately after Cardinal Ratzinger was announced as the 265th leader of the Roman Catholic Church.
The new Pope earlier paid tribute to Poland’s adored John Paul II in his first words to the huge crowd that streamed into Saint Peter’s Square as soon as white smoke began billowing from the chimney of the Sistine Cathedral, announcing the election of a new pope.
"Dear brothers and sisters, after the great Pope John Paul II the cardinals have elected me a simple and humble laborer in the vineyard of the Lord," new Pope Benedict XVI said. However some Polish believers had hoped he would be known as Pope John Paul III, to show continuity.
AUSTRIA WARNINGS
In Austria, a group seeking more liberal Catholicism reportedly warned that the church’s future would be undermined if Pope Benedict the Sixteenth does not carry out reforms. Hans Peter Hurkal, of the group We Are The Church, said "there is a clear demand for reform, but the election of Cardinal Ratzinger signals continuity," the Voice Of America (VOA) network reported.
Yet in Britain, the Archbishop of Canterbury, head of the Anglican church, welcomed the election of the German Cardinal. Archbishop Rowan Williams was quoted as saying that his selection is also of great significance to Christians everywhere. Overseas, Australian Prime Minister John Howard reportedly called Ratzinger a "sound theologian" who, like his predecessor, would bring together people of different faiths.
Pope Benedict XVI made clear he wanted to follow in the footsteps of his conservative predecessor during a message read in Latin to cardinals gathered in the Sistine Chapel for the first Mass celebrated by the 265th leader of the Roman Catholic Church.
PHILIPPINES SUPPPORT
That was music in the ears of the president of the predominantly Roman Catholic Philippines, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. She reportedly strongly supports the church’s positions on abortion and birth control despite the country’s high birth rate.
In a written statement, she focused on hopes that the new pope will follow John Paul II’s role as a peacemaker. "May this be the seed for ending the conflicts that divide us," she said.
Leaders from Muslim nations, including Yemen and Pakistan, also echoed the hope that the pontiff would help to overcome divisions between religions and countries. Pope Benedict XVI said Wednesday, April 20, his "primary task" would be to work to reunify all Christians and that sentiment alone was not enough. "Concrete acts that enter souls and move consciences are needed," he added.
SPECIAL MESSAGE
Vatican watchers said the message was designed to show that he intent on following many of the groundbreaking paths charted by John Paul, who they claim tried to heal the 1,000-year-old tensions within different churches.
However the 78-year old German inherits difficult issues, including priest sex-abuse scandals that have cost the church millions of dollars in settlements in the United States and elsewhere, chronic shortages of priests and nuns in the West, and calls for easing the ban on condoms to help fight the spread of AIDS.
The London-based pro-choice group "Marie Stopes International" was not impressed. It said the choice of Cardinal Ratzinger is a missed opportunity if he follows the same policies of his predecessor against condoms and contraception, VOA reported.
CHINA REACTION
But China’s government suggested that its relations with the Vatican could improve – if it cuts ties with Taiwan. China, which suspended relations with the Vatican in 1951, demands that Catholics worship only in churches approved by a state-controlled church group that does not recognize the pope’s authority.
Oded Ben-Hor, Israel’s ambassador to the Vatican, reportedly told Army Radio that "Israel can certainly coexist with him." He stressed "the real test will come over the course of time," a sentiment reflected in different corners around the world.
(EDITORS NOTE: SEE ALSO TUESDAY’S BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. With: Stefan J. Bos, BosNewsLife Research and reporters in Vatican City, Berlin, Warsaw, Vienna and Asia).
