Benedict XVI: A communicative style in dialogue with culture

Abstract

A few months after the resignation of Benedict XVI, a prestigious German cardinal and theologian wrote that this pontiff did not fit into any scheme (Kasper 2013, 490). With this he sought to underline something of the mystery of his person, but also the impossibility of interpreting and classifying him within the typical categories. However, this difficulty does not prevent us from glimpsing as a common thread of his pontificate some features with relatively clear outlines. One of them is to have elaborated a style of communicating the faith capable of reaching the heart and understanding of today’s man, while at the same time, presenting a message with sufficient intellectual credentials to enter into direct dialogue with contemporary culture. Understanding this communicative style implies first of all recognizing the fact that Benedict XVI never resigned from being a theologian. And it is precisely there, in his theological vision, that this style sinks its deepest roots. To be more precise, in the meaning that Ratzinger granted to the word as both the means chosen by God to communicate himself to man (revelation) and the most eminent mode of human communication (Benedict XVI 2008a). A word that, in order to be effective, must appeal to the moral conscience as well as to discursive reason and the affections of the heart. Benedict XVI trusted from the beginning of his pontificate in the silent power of the word (T€ uck 2013, 12), being aware that the echoes and fruits of it can come quite some time later. Although usually it did not take long to notice the positive effects. Good testimony to this positive effect includes the early fascination with which his speeches were received, the growing attendance at his catechetical sessions, the sales of his books and the spiritual nourishment many found in his homilies. This new style of discreet and sober communication definitely offers a certain novelty. Benedict XVI is clear that communicating does not consist only in transmitting wellarticulated ideas, following the rules of rhetoric or attending to the science of communication. This is where his theological vision comes into play once again: to communicate is to enter into communion (Scheffczyk 1966, 19). To communicate effectively, it is necessary to enter into the logic of personal encounter and to respect the dialogical dimension of the word. For Benedict XVI the communication of his message always meant a continuous communication of himself through his words, as Archbishop Gil Tamayo said in an interview (Latorre de Silva 2023). For only from love and friendship is authentic communication possible: