Cardinal Ratzinger: The Vatican's Enforcer of the Faith (Hardcover)

~ (Author), John Allen (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Widely considered a conservative "enforcer of the faith," Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger may be the most important figure in the Catholic Church's rightward turn under John Paul II, and he will have major influence in the conclave that elects the next pope. Allen traces Ratzinger from his Bavarian boyhood "in Hitler's shadow," through a distinguished if stormy theological career and a rapid rise in the hierarchy, to his current position as prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Allen responds to Ratzinger's recollections (e.g., Milestones , 1998) by carefully attending to documentary evidence and thus forges a balanced depiction of him. Ratzinger's experience of the radical student movement, Allen argues, affected his change from being generally progressive to conservatism. That conservatism shows tellingly in Ratzinger's relations with theological colleagues and his battles against liberation and feminist theologies. Ratzinger, Allen notes, has been a polarizing figure, dismissed without a hearing by the Left and embraced uncritically by the Right. Allen's careful reading facilitates more responsibly interpreting Ratzinger's probable influence beyond this papacy. \plain\f0\fs17 Steven Schroeder
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"...very readable and informative...The author succeeds in helping us to understand the man." -- Anvil, 19.1 (2002)

"Provides a useful overview of Catholic debates in recent decades and highlights many problems that still need attention." -- Pacifica, June 2001

"[a] pacy and painstakingly fair-minded study" -- Times Literary Supplement, 8 March 2002

“Allen has thoroughly researched this biography, and there is much material of interest…Without doubt it is important." -- Laudetur, June MMI

“Full of important information about Ratzinger’s career and changes of position.” -- The New York Review of Books, April 26, 2001

“Meticulously researched…Allen has provided a fairly evenhanded account of a key leader in the Catholic Church today.” -- St. Anthony Messenger, June 2001

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 340 pages
• Publisher: Continuum International Publishing Group (November 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0826412653
• ISBN-13: 978-0826412652
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,250,319 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Allen Himself Now Sees Flaws, April 27, 2005

By	dumbox1 (Arlington, VA USA) - See all my reviews

To his credit, John Allen has acknowledged the flaws in his biography of Cardinal Ratzinger. In a 2004 lecture at Catholic University, and again in his "Word from Rome" column on 4/26/05 (shortly after Ratzinger's election as Pope Benedict XVI), Mr. Allen noted that he was greatly affected by a negative review of the book by Fr. Joseph Komonchak in Commonweal magazine. Fr. Komonchak's review made Mr. Allen realize that he "was locked in a dualistic mentality in which Ratzinger was consistently wrong and his critics consistently right.... The book - which I modestly believe is not without its merits - is nevertheless too often written in a 'good guys and bad guys' style that vilifies the cardinal."

Mr. Allen is currently working on a new book on Cardinal Ratzinger/Pope Benedict, which he says he hopes "will be a more balanced and mature account of both Ratzinger's views and the politics that made him pope." As I've become a great fan of Mr. Allen's journalistic work in recent years, I'm confident that his new book will live up to those hopes, and far exceed this one in quality and balance.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Don't read this book; wait for Allen's revised biography, May 3, 2005

By	K. A. de Souza (Montreal, Quebec Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pope Benedict XVI (Paperback)

This book is quite unfair, as Allen himself has acknowledged. As his journalism has matured, Allen has intended to write a significantly reworked biography. He now has the chance, and it is in the works from Doubleday. Please wait for it! John Allen is now definitely the best Eenglish language journalist covering the Catholic Church, but this has been the case for only the last three or four years in my opinion. I would strongly recommend his recent work (e.g. All the Pope's Men), but this particular book is not worth a read. All that follows is a section from Allen's column of April 26, 2005:

"Six years ago, I wrote a biography of the man who is now pope titled Cardinal Ratzinger: The Vatican's Enforcer of the Faith. In the intervening period, I have learned a few things about the universal Catholic church and how things look from different perspectives. If I were to write the book again today, I'm sure it would be more balanced, better informed, and less prone to veer off into judgment ahead of sober analysis.

This, I want to stress, is not a Johnny-come-lately conclusion motivated by the fact that the subject of the book has now become the pope. In a lecture delivered at the Catholic University of America as part of the Common Ground series, on June 25, 2004, I said the following about the book:

"My 'conversion' to dialogue originated in a sort of 'bottoming out.' It came with the publication of my biography of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, issued by Continuum in 2000 and titled The Vatican's Enforcer of the Faith. The first major review appeared in Commonweal, authored by another of my distinguished predecessors in this lecture series, Fr. Joseph Komonchak. It was not, let me be candid, a positive review. Fr. Komonchak pointed out a number of shortcomings and a few errors, but the line that truly stung came when he accused me of "Manichean journalism." He meant that I was locked in a dualistic mentality in which Ratzinger was consistently wrong and his critics consistently right. I was initially crushed, then furious. I re-read the book with Fr. Komonchak's criticism in mind, however, and reached the sobering conclusion that he was correct. The book - which I modestly believe is not without its merits - is nevertheless too often written in a "good guys and bad guys" style that vilifies the cardinal. It took Fr. Komonchak pointing this out, publicly and bluntly, for me to ask myself, 'Is this the kind of journalist I want to be'? My answer was no, and I hope that in the years since I have come to appreciate more of those shades of gray that Fr. Komonchak rightly insists are always part of the story.
After Ratzinger's election as Benedict XVI was announced, I had hoped to have the opportunity to write a new preface for the book contextualizing some of the views it expresses. Unfortunately, the publisher in the United States, for reasons that I suppose are fairly obvious, had already begun reprinting the book without consulting me. Hence it is probably already appearing in bookstores, without any new material from me.

I can't do anything about that, although the British publishers were kind enough to ask me to write a new preface, which I have already done, so at least the damage will be limited in the U.K.

What is under my control, however, is a new book for Doubleday (a Random House imprint), which I hope will be a more balanced and mature account of both Ratzinger's views and the politics that made him pope. It has been in the works for some time and I hope it will be worthy of the enormity of the story, and the trust of those who elect to read it."

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Still may be worth a skim, May 11, 2005

By	Andrew S. Rogers (Seattle, Washington) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Pope Benedict XVI (Paperback)

Having read and been impressed by the excellence of John L. Allen's two recent books about the Catholic Church, "Conclave" (2002) and "All the Pope's Men" (2004), I had no hesitation in hurrying out and securing a copy of "Cardinal Ratzinger" as soon as I heard of the subject's elevation to the papacy. Ouch! Fascinated as I was by the apparent wealth of information and documentation in these pages, I needed an asbestos bookmark to survive the heat of Allen's judgment of the man.

I am therefore most indebted to other reviewers on this page who report news I apparently missed, that Allen has backed away from this book and its lack of "sober analysis." It's good to see that the insightful, balanced, Allen of his later works is the true man, and my respect for him rises still further for his honesty in admitting that things got a little out of control the first time around.

Still, I would argue that this book is still worth a read because not all of Ratzinger's critics have made the same journey. "Cardinal Ratzinger" not only transmits Allen's own strong feelings at the time, but the judgments of many others throughout the length of Joseph Ratzinger's long career. Allen may have changed his mind, but he's just one (albeit prominent) man; the criticisms leveled here -- to say nothing of the invectives hurled by others -- aren't going away. Allen's new bio will no doubt be a far better book. But if you want to experience at least some of the strong feelings Benedict XVI and his pre-elevation legacy have generated, this may still be a worthwhile place to start.

Just bring your awareness of how the author's opinions have matured, and a good pair of oven mitts.