‘A man of great ability with uncluttered vision’

THE Primate of the Catholic Church in Ireland, Archbishop of Armagh Seán Brady, has described Pope Benedict XVI as a man of great ability coupled with an uncluttered vision.

“He will also be very keen on dialogue with people of other faiths and other churches,” he said.

The archbishop hoped the new Pope would include Ireland in any future travel plans.

“We would certainly welcome him here in Ireland,” he said.

He described him as a “very humble and unassuming man of great strength of character and integrity.

“The election of our new Pope is not only a source of great joy and hope for Catholics throughout the world, it is also an important event for the whole human family.

“At the beginning of the third millennium we are blessed with a deeper sense of our common humanity and with a shared sense of responsibility in striving for a more just and peaceful world.

“Pope Benedict XVI will play a critical part in progressing this search, in engaging with people of all faiths and none in constructive dialogue about the joy and hopes, the challenges and the fears of the world. This is a daunting prospect,” said Archbishop Brady.

The Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Diarmuid Martin, said Pope Benedict possessed an “extraordinary intellect” and theological ability. “He was one of the theological giants of the last century,” Dr Martin said.

Bishop of Cloyne John Magee yesterday welcomed the appointment of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as Pope.

Bishop Magee said the new Pope would “reach out to the whole world. I think he’s a very excellent choice at this tim.” “I know him as a man, as a very warm-hearted, a very easy to speak-to (man), a man who speaks in several languages, and is quite fluent in them, a man who has a deep understanding of the Second Vatican Council; he was part of the Second Vatican Council and he was brought in by Pope John Paul II to head up a congregation which would help the Pope to carry out his mission. The mission of the Pope is nothing other than preserving the deposit of faith, that is handed on from Christ to the Apostles and through the Apostles and particularly to Peter, right through the ages.”

Bishop Magee said that it was now the mission of the new Pope to preserve the deposit of faith and to promote it in a world which “sometimes is very alien to the teachings of Jesus Christ.”

He also stressed the significance of the choosing of the name Pope Benedict XVI, harking back as it does to Pope Benedict XV, who Bishop Magee said was a man who sent out “great missionary bodies” across the globe during his time in the Vatican.

He also said that it was “very significant” that, this August, World Youth Day would take place in Cologne in Germany, the home nation of the new Pontiff.

The setting for the biennial event was chosen by Pope John Paul II. Some 500 people will travel to Cologne from Ireland to attend the event, which could prove to be the first homecoming of the new Pope since his appointment.

The Church of Ireland Primate, Robin Eames, offered Catholics in the North his “prayerful good wishes” on the appointment.

“I pray that God will bless and guide him as he takes up his new privileges and heavy responsibilities at this time,” he said.

The Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Rev Dr John Neill, said he hoped the new Pope would “build on the work of the Second Vatican Council and on the ecumenical vision of many since in promoting the unity for which Jesus prayed.

“The Pope is in a unique position to promote respect between those of other faiths as did the late John Paul II.

“In a globalised world, the united voice of people of faith will be increasingly called upon against the evils of war and poverty.

“On behalf of the Church of Ireland people of Dublin and Glendalough, I would like to extend to our sisters and brothers in the Roman Catholic Church the assurance of our prayers for them and for the new Pope as he embarks on his pontificate.”

The president of the Methodist Church in Ireland, Dr Brian Fletcher, welcomed the appointment.

“Our prayer is that, chosen by the Holy Spirit the new Pontiff will lead the Church in God’s way and that like Benedict XV he, too, will strive to bring about peace in today’s world,” he said.