Pope Benedict XVI, Part 1

Some of you readers might have noticed in my right sidebar under "AgitBooks" that I am reading Let God's Light Shine Forth: The Spiritual Vision of Pope Benedict XVI by Robert Moynihan. Why would I be reading a book about the new pope? I admit I've been pretty harsh on the guy both here and here. But as a quasi-Catholic, I wanted to learn more about the man.

The book consists of mostly interviews that the author conducted with Cardinal Ratzinger/Pope Benedict XVI over several years. The author gives a full biography of Ratzinger as well as succinctly describes his theological philosophy. I was actually in Borders last week when I picked up the book. I read the back cover and this quote just really struck me, and prompted me to purchase the book:

The purpose of our lives is to reveal God to men. And only where God is seen does life truly begin. Only when we meet the living God in Christ do we know what life is. We are not some casual and meaningless product of evolution. Each of us is the result of a thought of God. Each of us is willed, each of us is loved, each of us is necessary -- His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI.

I don't mean to offend some of you with all the religious rhetoric, but the essence of his statement is very positive. The positive message that "each of us is necessary" really attracted my attention. However, Benedict does  manages to bash evolution and mention that we should reveal God to men, not women, in that statement as well. But I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt and learn more about what he has to say. 

So my fellow Agitprop fans, I invite you to come along on this journey with me. This will be an on-going series in which I outline some of the main points in the book and offer healthy doses of criticism. From what I've read so far, Benedict is not a fan of "Modernity". He doesn't really like secularism either. It shall be an interesting read . . .