This space is for anyone who had the good fortune of meeting Joseph Ratzinger before he became Pope, and whom we invite- nay, beg - to share that memory with us. It will also accommodate published accounts by or about those who knew Ratzi in the past or had some contact with him.
Paparatzifan started a new thread called "Memories.." in the main forum, because she tells the story of the first time she saw Ratzi up close.
For those who do not know it yet, Paparatzifan is an Argentinian of Italian descent and lives in Italy now, but she still has family in Buenos Aires. She went home recently for a short time, after her November 9 attendance at the General Audience, and broke back with her some items from her "archives" in Buenos Aires.
Equally of interest, she created and moderates papaluciani.com, a beautiful website dedicated to the memory of John Paul I, the smiling Pope, who was her Patriarch in Venice before he was elected Pope. It is her connection to Papa Luciani's family that led to the fascinating episode she recounts below.
---------------------------------------------------------------
PAPARATZI'S FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH RATZI
After 14 months of absence from my country, one of the first things I did was to go through my archive and look for any material that I had on our Ratzi.
The earliest thing I kept was a yellowed copy of the Osservatore Romano from October 15, 1978. I had to pick it up gingerly with two fingers in order to scan it, so it would not fall apart.
Then the photos from the 1997 edition of “La mia vita” (Italian edition of Ratzi’s autobiography),
and from “Cardinals of the third millenium” published in 1996 by Grzegorz Galaszka (the very same photographer who took our pictures during the November 9 audience recently!).
There's a series of pictures from this book, taken on that now-famous red sofa, which can be seen in "Foto da Cardinale"]
Finally, I also found two notebooks, written in August 1986 to July 1987 when I was studying in Italy. Thanks to Notebook-1, I could re-live the first time I came close to Ratzi with details that I had already forgotten.
It was September 1986. I was in Rome at the invitation of Edoardo Luciani (brother of John Paul I) to attend the Mass for the 7th anniversary of the deaths of Paul VI and John Paul I, to be celebrated by John Paul II at St. Peter’s. I was joined by two other friends of Edoardo, a married couple, Valeria and Vittorio. Here is what I wrote at the time:
“We finally arrived at the big gate which gave access to the Vatican, beside the Palace of the Holy Office. Edoardo presented himself to the Swiss Guard on duty, who greeted him mistakenly with “Oh, you are Signor Luciano.” So Edoardo had to say, “I am the brother of the dead Pope.”… And so we were allowed to come in. Then there was another man who asked us if we had tickets. We walked on towards an entrance door to the Basilica. [Obviously, she is referring to one of the side entrances not accessible to the general public.] Cardinal Poletti, driving up in his car, arrived at about the same time.
Inside, we passed right next to the Great Baldachin. There was already a huge crowd inside. Edoardo and his sister Antonia, to whom I was introduced, were to be in the first row of seats for laymen, to the right of the altar. We were given seats in the same sector but a few rows behind. In front of Edoardo, I could see Cardinal Sin [a Filipino cardinal] seated. Farther from us, I could see Cardinal Ratzinger and another cardinal. Soon Cardinals Casaroli, Etchagaray and others started to arrive.
Then the Pope appeared, robed in black. He greeted as many as he could see, and he lingered a bit longer in our sector because Edoardo was there.
As the Mass went on, our emotions were rising. Valeria was recording it on her Walkman. During the homily, she handed me a picture of John Paul I. This, along with the Pope’s words, moved me to tears.
Before the Communion, Edoardo came to tell us that the Pope himself would give us Communion. Valeria and I were tremulous with surprise and anticipation!…We were asked to fall in line – Edoardo, Antonia, Valeria, myself, Vittorio… We were to be the first to receive Communion! As I stood in line, I was right next to Cardinal Ratzinger who was still seated. Then the Holy Fahter approached. When my turn came, I looked the Pope in the eye until I received the Host, and he looked back at me as he said “The Body of Christ..”(unlike other priests who look at your mouth as they give you the Eucharist). I answered “Amen”, and I went back to my seat, still unbelieving that this was happening to me!
I offered my thanks to the Lord, still trembling from head to foot. My legs were literally shaking... After the Mass, the Pope descended to the grottoes to pray before the tombs of his predecessors. Edoardo and Antonia must have gone with him, because we could not find them when we went out through the door we had come in.
Cardinal Deskur in his wheelchair passed by us. Farther ahead, there was Cardinal Ratzinger who was chatting with another cardinal. I wanted to approach him BUT….. ACCURSED BUT! (I DID NOT!)…As we walked away, I also saw Cardinal Pironio (Argentine), and I greeted him, reminding him where we had met. We had a picture taken together, but he was rather uneasy because it started to rain. Soon after we said goodbye, the downpour came. We all ran for cover. We found shelter under the colonnade, and from there, we took part in the Angelus.”
PS: You see, girls. I had forgotten that detail that I had wanted to approach Ratzinger. If I had been just a little more courageous, I would have been able not only to greet him but to have a picture taken with him. So I can only say what I had written that time …ACCURSED BUT!!! If at that time, I was already regretful, what about now? Clearly, in my account at the time, it was not important what was happening while I was waiting to receive Communon and Ratzinger was right next to me. The important thing was meeting John Paul II face to face.
But I have already told some of you what I knew of Ratzinger at the time:
“In those years, I admired him for his work at the CDF. In Latin America, the topic of Liberation Theology was polemical, and I was very proud of the steps taken by the Prefect against it because I always wanted a clarity of doctrine in my Church. So, to find myself next to a Cardinal whose work I admired was not an everyday matter. Therefore, when I recognized him, I thought to myself. “Ohhh, the famous Cardinal Ratzinger!” Meanwhile, he was looking at the cardinal who was seated to his left. But while I was staring at him, he turned suddenly and caught me looking at him. He had a half-smile and had an almost funny expression with an eyebrow raised!…” [Have we not seen that expression in some pictures?]
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 11/12/2005 3.40]