I am now going to say what I think about Pope Benedict - if you have read the entry below, then you will know that he wasn't really my preference, but I'm not "dismayed" either.

Firstly, I think that the emphasis that excuses for newspapers, such as the Sun and Daily Mirror, have placed upon the fact that as a young boy he was enrolled in the Hitler Youth is appalling. Apart from the fact that it is much easier in retrospect to see that Hitler & his political movements were bad, it is also much easier to see these things as an adult. He was a child, and it was 60 years ago that these things happened. It is obvious that he is not a Nazi sympathiser, so I don't see why it is such an issue to these people.

Then, there's the matter of his being in the German army. What the newspapers don't say, is that in 1943, Ratzinger was a 16 year old at a prepatory seminary, and his WHOLE CLASS were forced to join the anti-aircraft corps. So, it apparently wasn't his choice to get involved with the army in the first place!

He is obviously a man deeply devoted to his faith, and to the Catholic Church. I believe that he has a sound knowledge of the Church in the different continents, and I believe that he will bear the issues that the Church as a whole, and in different parts of the world in his mind, and prayers, and will try to lead the Church as a unified body, whilst recognising that the Church faces different issues in different parts of the world.

He also seems to be a man who is far more concerned that secularism, and denial of God, is far more off track than any other religion (which contain some truth, but as they're not Catholicism do not have the full truth). He seems willing to continue inter-faith dialogue (but too the extent of John Paul II?), with the exception, maybe, of Buddhism, which he doesn't perceive to be worth the space it occupies.

He also wants to make the Church pure, which can only be good.

There are some things about his view-point that I don't like.

The first is his description of homosexuality as "an intrinsic moral evil". People do not choose to be homosexual. Surely it would be worse to be homosexual, but force yourself to have heterosexual relationships. Whether or not homosexuality is something that the Church approves of, the Church still needs to respect homosexual people - they too are made in the image and form of God.

Secondly, (yes, I'm being rather feminist here) is his declaration that the ordination of women would be "a grave offence to the divine constitution of the Church". Even if the ordination of women is not something that he agrees with, I think this is a bit radical! If ordaining women would be such a grave offence, would he agree with things like female eucharistic ministers, and women being allowed on the altar?

The final one is his saying that the use of condoms to prevent AIDS is "a kind of behaviour that will encourage evil". Surely those who have AIDS and are married, should be allowed to have a sexual relationship, without the fear that they may pass the disease on to their partner, or their children.

I think that the Church does need to realise that "contraceptives" are not just to prevent pregnancy. Condoms can prevent AIDS, and in my mind, that can only be a good thing. The Pill is also not used merely as a contraceptive, it helps to relieve period pains - that can be agonising - and PMT - which isn't nice either. But, as celibate men, those who really can influence the teachings of the Catholic Church, don't have to worry about contracting AIDS from their wife, and have never experienced period pains or PMT.