Published: April 2005
On April 19, 2005, white smoke rose from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel and the bells of St. Peter’s tolled, signaling that 115 Roman Catholic cardinals had elected the 265th pope. Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, 78, from Germany, took the name Pope Benedict XVI. Below are links to media websites that feature thoughts on the new pope from Boston College faculty. @BC will add more links as they become available.
- Philip Cunningham, director of the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning, on the concerns of Jewish and Catholic interfaith experts (The Forward, April 22, 2005)
- Frank Brennan, SJ, a visiting fellow at Boston College, on Cardinal Ratzinger (The Australian, April 21, 2005)
- Theology professor Thomas Groome on the challenges facing Pope Benedict XVI (Business Week, April 20, 2005)
- Groome on the pope’s view of the sexual abuse crisis (Associated Press, April 20, 2005)
- James Weiss, associate professor of theology, on Cardinal Law’s probable standing at the Vatican (Boston Herald, April 20, 2005)
- Stephen Pope, associate professor of theology, on theologians’ concerns about Pope Benedict XVI (Boston Herald, April 20, 2005)
- Groome on American Catholics’ views of the new pope (All Things Considered, April 19, 2005, audio)
- Cardinal Ratzinger’s writings on Christian-Jewish relations from the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning
- Reflections on the papacy of John Paul II from @BC and Public Affairs
