ROME In the early days of any papacy, much attention is given to signals that give hints to the direction and priorities of the newly elected pope. One of the most significant, but difficult to verify of these signals is the papal name. Since the early centuries of the Church the newly elected pope has followed the custom of adopting a name, usually one of some predecessor.
The name Benedict has ancient roots in the Church and derives from the Latin meaning “to bless.” Analysts have largely focused on the connection with the most recent Benedict, the pope who attempted to halt the political deterioration that led to World War I, but who is often overlooked today. Benedict XV, who ruled the Church between 1914 to 1922, also attempted to stop the strife within the Church after the suppression by St. Pius X of the Modernist heresy. Modernism has arisen again and now dominates much of the Catholic ecclesiastical institution. Some commentators have speculated that the name might indicate the new pope’s intention to revisit the work of Benedict XV in ending the previous Modernist crisis.
One commentator observed that the choice may indicate Benedict’s intention to canonize John Paul since the previous Benedict also immediately followed a canonized saint. Such a comparison might not be apt however, since, though it is possible John Paul may be canonized, it will not likely be for his diligence in ecclesiastical discipline or governance which was not a high priority for the late pope.
The deeper roots of the name might be more illuminating. The Church’s first famous Benedict was the 6th century founder of Western Monasticism. St. Benedict of Nursia is normally credited with saving western Christian culture during the rise of the barbarian invasions of Europe that finally threw down the corrupt old order of the Roman Empire.
Benedictine monks spent centuries preserving literature of the early Church and classical world and teaching throughout the middle ages and laid the foundations for modern universities, hospitals, and even jurisprudence. The monks’ centuries of patient preservation and building, the taming of wild northern Europe, laid the political and economic foundations for Christendom. Pope Benedict XVI’s desire to rescue Europe from a new ‘dark ages’ of tyrannical secularism is well known and his name invoking St. Benedict, the patron of Europe, is perhaps appropriate therefore.
In an interview with the Italian daily, La Repubblica, that later made headlines across Europe, then-Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger said, “A struggle exists and we must defend religious freedom against the imposition of an ideology which is presented as if it were the only voice of rationality, when it is only the expression of a 'certain' rationalism.”
“Negative birthrates and immigration are changing Europe's ethnic makeup. Above all we've gone from being a Christian culture to one of aggressive secularism which at times is intolerant,” Ratzinger said.
(This update courtesy of LifeSiteNews.com.)