Joseph Ratzinger

Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, regarded as one of the world’s foremost theologians, wrote numerous books and articles on theology and spirituality. He served as His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI from 2005-2013, and died on December 31, 2022.

Articles by Joseph Ratzinger

The Reservation of the Blessed Sacrament

This article can be found as Part II, Chapter 4 of Pope Benedict XVI’s book The Spirit of the Liturgy, available from Ignatius Press.

The tabernacle as sacred tent, as place of the Shekinah, the presence of the living Lord, developed only in the second millennium. It was the fruit of passionate theological struggles and their resulting clarifications, in which the permanent presence of Christ in the consecrated Host emerged with greater clarity.

Sacred Places: The Altar and the Direction of Liturgical Prayer

This article can be found as Part II, Chapter 3 of Pope Benedict XVI’s book The Spirit of the Liturgy, available from Ignatius Press.

Despite all the variations in practice that have taken place far into the second millennium, one thing has remained clear for the whole of Christendom: praying toward the east is a tradition that goes back to the beginning. Moreover, it is a fundamental expression of the Christian synthesis of cosmos and history, of being rooted in the once-for-all events of salvation history while going out to meet the Lord who is to come again.

Sacred Places: The Significance of the Church Building

This article can be found as Part II, Chapter 2 of Pope Benedict XVI’s book The Spirit of the Liturgy, available from Ignatius Press.

This close connection with the synagogue, with its architectural structure and liturgical form, does not in any way contradict what we said about the Christian liturgy not just continuing the synagogue but also incorporating the Temple.