wfn.org | [UCC NEWS] UCC leader expresses 'disappointment' -- CORRECTED

[guessb@ucc.org]

United Church of Christ
United Church News
The Rev. J. Bennett Guess, News Director
216/736-2177, <guessb@ucc.org>

For immediate release
April 19, 2005

United Church of Christ leader offers prayers, expresses 'personal
disappointment' as Benedict XVI begins papacy

Saying he prays that Pope Benedict XVI "may have the strength and wisdom
sufficient for the leadership he is now called to exercise," the leader of
the 1.3-million-member United Church of Christ (U.S.A.) nonetheless
expressed concern today (April 19), calling the former cardinal's
theological tone "rigid, conservative and confrontational."

"Today as the conclave announces its decision, the offering of prayers
for
this new pontificate is the most appropriate response from other Christian
leaders," the Rev. John H. Thomas, UCC general minister and president,
said
in a written statement to United Church News. "Nevertheless, I acknowledge
that I personally greet Cardinal Ratzinger's selection with profound
disappointment. Cardinal Ratzinger's long tenure in the Vatican has been
marked by a theological tone that is rigid, conservative and
confrontational."

Thomas said that, during the papacy of Pope John Paul II, Ratzinger often
"lacked the warm pastoral heart that is so central to the ministry of
bishops, including the Bishop of Rome."

"The harsh treatment received by many gifted Catholic theologians over
the
years from the Cardinal's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has
been profoundly troubling," said Thomas, who served as the UCC's chief
ecumenical officer before being elected the UCC's leader in 1999.
"[Ratzinger's] interpretations of the ecumenical vision of Vatican II have
been narrow and constrained, and he has persisted in describing the
ecclesial status of non-Catholic churches in ways that have been
insensitive and demeaning."

Despite his initial reticence, Thomas said he is hoping the new pope will
surprise his critics, as other popes have done before him.

"In other times the Holy Spirit has surprised us with gifts and graces
we
could not have anticipated from new popes at the time of their election,"
Thomas said. "I pray that there may be similar surprises in the coming
weeks and months."

# # #

The full text of Thomas' statement follows:

"With Christians around the world I join in praying for the newly elected
Pope Benedict XVI that he may have the strength and wisdom sufficient for
the leadership he is now called to exercise in the Catholic Church. Today
as the conclave announces its decision, the offering of prayers for this
new pontificate is the most appropriate response from other Christian
leaders.

"Nevertheless, I acknowledge that I personally greet Cardinal Ratzinger's
selection with profound disappointment.  Cardinal Ratzinger's long tenure
in the Vatican has been marked by a theological tone that is rigid,
conservative and confrontational. The harsh treatment received by many
gifted Catholic theologians over the years from the Cardinal's Congregation
for the Doctrine of the Faith has been profoundly troubling. His
interpretations of the ecumenical vision of Vatican II have been narrow and
constrained, and he has persisted in describing the ecclesial status of
non-Catholic churches in ways that have been insensitive and demeaning.
"To many of us who have watched his ministry during John Paul II's papacy,
[Ratzinger] has lacked the warm pastoral heart that is so central to the
ministry of bishops, including the Bishop of Rome.

"In other times the Holy Spirit has surprised us with  gifts and graces we
could not have anticipated from new popes at the time of their election. I
pray that there may be similar surprises in the coming weeks and months."

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