Did Benedict XVI Really Deny Co-Authoring a New Book in Defense of Priestly Celibacy?

By David Martin

The news broke Monday concerning a new book co-authored by Cardinal Robert and Benedict XVI, titled From the Depths of Our Hearts: Priesthood, Celibacy, and the Crisis of the Catholic Church, in which the former pontiff staunchly defends priestly celibacy.

Among other things, Benedict says in the book that the renunciation of all things is a criterion for entering the priesthood, pointing out that from the first century "men could only receive the sacrament of Holy Orders if they had committed themselves to sexual abstinence."

It was reported Tuesday that Benedict XVI has requested of Ignatius Press, the English publisher of the book, that he be removed as co-author. In comments to the Italian news agency ANSA, Benedict XVI’s confidant and personal secretary, Archbishop Georg Gänswein, said he has "acted on instructions from the pope emeritus and asked Cardinal Robert Sarah to contact the book’s publisher and request that they remove Benedict XVI’s name as co-author of the book, and remove his signature from the introduction and conclusion."

Whether this request comes from Benedict XVI or Ganswein was pressured into saying this remains to be seen, but there is no question that the liberal Vatican bureaucracy is behind this move to remove Benedict as co-author. According to Bishop Athanasius Schneider, Cardinal Sarah’s intervention in getting this book published “has provoked, so to speak, the anger of hell.”

Critics of the book say it "opposes” Pope Francis by raising "specter of a parallel magisterium" when in fact the book upholds the true Magisterium against Francis' counter-magisterium.

What is certain is that Benedict XVI previously approved the book. Cardinal Sarah, who heads  the Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship, issued a statement Tuesday confirming Benedict's foreknowledge and approval of the book. Therein he states: "After various exchanges in view of the development of the book, on November 19, I finally sent a manuscript, the cover, a common introduction and conclusion, the text of Benedict XVI and my own text."

The cardinal adds: "On November 25, the Pope Emeritus expressed his great satisfaction with the texts written in common, and he added the following: ‘For my part, I agree that the text should be published in the form you have foreseen.’”

This sharply contradicts Archbishop Ganswein's statement to ANSA, in which he says that Benedict "did not approve a project for a co-authored book, and that he had not seen or authorized the cover."

Ignatius Press has stood by the co-authorship and cover. In a statement released Tuesday, Mark Brumley, President of Ignatius Press, said: "Ignatius Press published the text as we received it from the French publisher Fayard. Fayard is the publisher with whom we have collaborated on three other Cardinal Sarah titles. The text we received indicates the two authors are Benedict XVI and Cardinal Sarah. That text also indicates that Benedict XVI co-authored an introduction and a conclusion with Cardinal Sarah, as well as his own chapter on the priesthood, wherein he describes how his exchanges with Cardinal Sarah gave him the strength to complete what would have gone unfinished.”

Continuing, he says: "Given that, according to Benedict XVI’s correspondence and Cardinal Sarah’s statement, the two men collaborated on this book for several months, that none of the essays have appeared elsewhere, and that a joint work as defined by the Chicago Manual of Style is  ‘a work prepared by two or more authors with the intention that their contribution be merged into inseparable or interdependent parts of a unitary whole,’ Ignatius Press considers this a coauthored publication.”

"Cardinal Sarah indicates the content of the book remains unchanged," the statement concludes. "That content, as noted, includes a coauthored introduction, a chapter by Benedict XVI, and a conclusion coauthored by Benedict XVI and Cardinal Sarah."

Hence there is no question that Cardinal Sarah has spoken truthfully about Benedict's approval and co-authorship of the book, but the question remains as to whether or not Benedict truly denied his co-authorship. Did Benedict XVI shrink or did Ganswein fabricate this concerning him? It appears that the same iron-clad Vatican bureaucracy that forced Benedict's "resignation" in 2013 has now coerced Ganswein into lying to ANSA about Benedict.  

We'll never know for sure until we hear it from the horse's mouth, but will we? The thing that would embolden the enemy to advance such a lie would be the foreknowledge that Benedict will no longer be able to speak about this himself, i.e. that he might be drugged or kept under surveillance. Recent photos of Benedict XVI show that he appears rather dazed.

The other possibility is that Pope Benedict might come forward himself to clarify this latest report. For this we pray, and especially, we pray he assertively go on record as co-authoring this fine book in defense of Catholic truth.

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