As most of you have heard by now, the new pope has been named -- Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, or Pope Benedict XVI -- and is being considered the most conservative person that could have been chosen for the job. Lovely.

The successor has frequently been the voice of controversy in newly discussed issues of reform in the Catholic Church, such as priests being allowed to marry and women being ordained. You may remember the hoo-ha that resulted from his comments on how John Kerry shouldn't have been allowed to receive communion because he was pro-choice. No wonder Bush welcomed him happily to the papacy as “a man of great wisdom and knowledge.”

Ratzinger actually claims that abortion and euthanasia are “grave sins”, believes that rock is the “vehicle of anti-religion”, and once said homosexuality was a tendency towards “intrinsic moral evil.” He also dismissed the talk over pedophilia committed by Catholic priests as being a “planned campaign” against the Church. As far as feminists go, he once wrote a letter to bishops worldwide labeling us as "adversaries" to men. Great wisdom and knowledge, indeed.

He considers liberalism, atheism, agnosticism, relativism and Marxism all threats to the faith. He even criticized cardinals who have fought poverty through social action in the past because he believed it supported Marxist ideology.

Whew. Good luck, Roman Catholics of the world!

Check out The Nation's article, "The Vatican's Enforcer", for more of a descriptive history on Ratzinger. Thanks to Big Slutty for the link.