In a recent article, the Brasilian theologian Leonardo Boff, who played a major role in the influentiual field of Liberation Theology, offers important insights into the figure of Joseph Ratzinger who dominated the Catholic Church for so many years, first as the Grand Inquisitor and Enforcer of Pope John Paul II, and later as Pope Benedict XVI, although in John Paul's latter years Ratzinger was already running the show. As one of the many prophetic figures in Catholic theology who were silenced by Ratzinger (and, in Boff's case, ultimately driven from the priesthood), Boff knew Ratzinger well, first as an academic and later as a implacable opponent. His testimony is important among the mass of sycophantic material that has appeared in the press - liberal and conservative - so that the true and, in the view of many, deeply harmful role of Ratzinger in the post-Vatican II Church is preserved for history. Whilst showing respect for the man, Boff points out that Ratzinger's contribution to theology is negligible - he is merely a supporter of traditional Catholic theology, much of it reworked by minds much greater and far-reaching than his (including Boff's, though he doesn't say so). Another aspect one must bear in mind in appraising him as a theologian (for me, conclusive, even if I did rate him as a theologian, though I certainly don't) are his savage attacks on the LGBTQ community in official Vatican documents while he was head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. He actually stated that while it was wrong to subject members of the LGBTQ community to violence, given their behaviour, they shouldn't be surprised by such violence. His one theological innovation is probably his invention of a second original sin when he referred to homosexuality as 'a more or less strong tendency ordered toward an intrinsic moral evil'. So he could be creative when he wanted to be but in an absurd manner and certainly in conflict with modern science and psychology - and respectable theology. One original sin presents enough theological conundrums without inventing another. Certainly he can be said to have fuelled homophobia on an unprecedented scale, given his influence. As Pope in 2012, he said that legalising gay relationships will 'actually harm and help destabilize marriage' and undermined 'the future of humanity'. Can a hater be a great theologian? History would suggest not. Also problematic in assessing Ratzinger's influence in the past forty years of the Catholic Church are the extreme lengths he went to in order to hide clerical abuse of minors and vulnerable adults, all very well documented. Boff's article - which rightly focuses on Ratzinger the theologian can be read for free in either German or English here:
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