Shake Hands with the Devil

The devil keeps popping up now and again in the most unlikely places. Pope Francis, of course, has accused his critics within the Church of directly doing the devil’s work – most recently, when speaking of EWTN in conversation with his Jesuit pals. Now the secular establishment in Germany has taken up his lead.

Recently, in a celebration of the work of Jurgen Habermas, the presenter of the panegyric, Jan Philipp Reemtsma, 1) did have one reservation. In 2004 Habermas and Cardinal Ratzinger has engaged in “dialogue” in an elaborately staged encounter before the media and select guests. Pro – Ratzinger sources like Peter Seewald’s book Benedikt XIV alleged that the two were in agreement as to the necessity of the continuing (if nebulous) role of religion in modern secular society. 2) According to Reemtsma, Habermas had thereby played Faust to Ratzinger’s Mephistopheles – and had entered into a pact with the devil. Indeed, like Lucifer, Pope Benedict also reeks of sulfur.

Habermas himself felt compelled to dispute this “accusation.” In no way had he acknowledged any continuing role for “pre-secular” thought (=Christianity) in modern society. Habermas denied any continuing dependency of secular thought on the “lost heritage” of religion. In fact he claimed that he argues for the complete separation of the two “dimensions.” 3)

It is a sad experience for Pope Benedict to still be denounced as a demon in his own country. And it must be even sadder to hear that his own attempt to “dialogue” with the German Left establishment has been completely and summarily rejected. But to point out that this meeting of the minds was a fantasy is only telling the truth! And I think Christianity has objectives going beyond seving as a launching pad for secular modernity and providing it intermittent moral advice.

1. A well-known wealthy member of the Left and of the establishment in Germany.
2. Seewald, Peter, Benedikt XIV: ein Leben at 737-38 (2020, Droemer Verlag, Munich)
3. A report on this affair can be found at Leven, Benjamin, “Wenn aus Ratzinger Mephisto wird,” (When Ratzinger turns into Mephisto), katholisch.de, 11/30/2021 ( apparently summarizing an article by the same author in Herder Korrrespondenz 12/2021)