"The Vatican defended the pope Tuesday from a growing chorus of Israeli critics who accused the German-born Benedict XVI of failing to express enough remorse for the Holocaust — a controversy that threatened to eclipse a papal pilgrimage aimed at building bridges between faiths. The pope delivered messages of peace while visiting the holiest Muslim and Jewish sites in Jerusalem — the Dome of the Rock and the Western Wall. But his speech Monday at Israel's national Holocaust memorial attracted the most attention in Israel, with the parliament speaker accusing Benedict of glossing over the Nazi genocide. Newspapers lambasted him for failing to apologize for what many in Israel see as Catholic indifference during World War II and the pope's own wartime actions — he served in the Hitler Youth corps and Nazi army — have also cast a shadow." [AP]
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How is it that there isn't way more outrage (now and when he was "selected") that the Pope is a former Nazi? Is the irony lost on most people?
This asshole had the balls to make the following comment at the holocaust memorial…"the church is working tirelessly to ensure that hatred will never reign in the hearts of man again." What a fucking hypocrite.
A bit rich if you consider the RC cult's official stand on sexual orientation when it states that….our "behavior" is intrinsically evil and disordered. This plays right into the hands of homophobes and those who are inclined to commit violent acts against us as well as influence legislation to discriminate, expressions of hatred in every sense of the word.
@Andrew: I wouldn't have included the word "former" in that sentence.
@Andrew: He was a Hitler Youth. He can be classified a Nazi about as much as a molested kid can be called sexually active.
@Michael W.:
Didn't he serve in the army as well?
@Andrew: No – but even if he had he would of been drafted like just about everyone else in the last few years of the war
He was forced into the Hitler Youth (though refused to attend meetings, a risky action) and at age 16 was drafted into the Army, from which he deserted. His family was bravely anti-Nazi and his cousin was killed by the Nazis. He and his family had a lot more understanding of the evils of Nazism than many other Germans.
Having said that, let's remember that Ratzinger was very much a liberal until the 1970s when he made a hard right turn.
@Kurt:
Kurt, that is true, though I'm in no way a supporter of Ratziner, quite the contrary. I suspect his sudden turn to the far right had a lot to do with his own internal conflict with sexual orientation. I wouldn't mind betting he's very deeply ensconced in the closet. Many anti-gay demagogues are often the most obvious, they go to the extreme to deflect from their own truth and identity, fear of being found out, similar to what we find in the republican party, politicians supporting discriminatory legislation against us while leading a double life on the down low. Nothing new. Hypocrisy and dishonesty of the worst kind.
"The Vatican defended the pope…" Isn't that like Disney defending Mickey Mouse?
To the Catholics following him who have ANY knowledge of Jesus, religion, etc. HE'S A FRIGGIN NAZI! Does there need to be any other argument? Seriously? He's a Nazi. A for reals Nazi. Enough said.
@Kurt: I've seen several of the 'biographies' of christer spokesmodel Ratzi you refer too and they have titles like "We Have a Pope! and "Joseph Ratzinger a Benedicto XVI/ In the Vineyard of the Lord: The Life, Faith and Teachings of Joseph Ratzinger," They're written by apologists and propagandists for the roman cult.
You seem to take them on faith. Really, Kurt, these are catholics, who believe ten ridiculous things before their first cup of coffee and get really weird as the day goes on. And you believe them? Their lies sound like the lies of so many Germans and Austrians after the war – “Hitler you say, no, I never heard of him.”
Ratzinger joined the HitlerJungend before he had to. He deserted from the Hitlerian military in April 1945, along with millions of others because it was a few days before the Nazi’s unconditional surrender.
His father was not "… bravely anti-Nazi”. His father was in fact in fact a sworn, serving officer of both the Bavarian State Police (Landespolizei) and the German national Regular Police (Ordnungspolizei). He stayed in the force after Kristallnacht and after the Ordnungspolizei were absorbed by the Gestapo (Geheime Staatspolizei). There is no record of Ratzingers family bravely helping anyone, although his father must have witnessed much illegality by the Nazi's as a Gestapo officer. He didn't even bother to help people on his own street who committed suicide or were killed.
The Ratzingers, father and son, may not have been camp guards but they were loyal supporters of the Nazi state. Papenfueher Ratzinger deserted a scant few days before Hitler took his own live. Like most German christians, they didn’t take a stand. They let millions die in camps and didn’t raise a finger.
@Bill Perdue:
Bill, thanks for that, you obviously did your homework, thoroughly. Keep it coming! Thank you again.
Am frankly shocked at the ignorance at some of these remarks; Ratzinger is far more down to earth than the last one who seemed to be more into naming as many saints as possible and running a temple of Mary rather than Christ. All the Americans posting here have no idea what Germany was like back then – only the aristocracy could refuse and even then it was difficult (not to mention many of them were Nazis).
The church has apologised for the war and the Ultra Orthodox Jews need to get over it – they have their land now.