Pope Benedict XVI Blog

Top Catholic Stories of 2006: A retrospective look at the year's headlines

Catholic World News

CWNews posted over 7,500 stories during the calendar year 2006: an average of over 28 new headlines (including our valuable "News Bytes") every weekday.

Among the most memorable stories of the past year were:

The Regensburg speech. (Powerful papal challenge to Islam, secularism) As CWN reported at the time, the speech was designed as a challenge both to Islam and to Western secularism, and a defense of the necessary tie between faith and reason. But many Islamic leaders took the Pope’s words as an affront while in the Western world the Pontiff’s critique of secularism was largely ignored. Ironically, these reactions-- the violent attacks of Islamic zealots and the indifference of secularists-- underlined the force of the Holy Father’s argument. CWN provided an early text of the Pope’s speech (the “uncorrected” version, which prompted the initial outrage among Muslims), and it drew more readers than any other item ever posted on the CWN site. (Pope's speech at University of Regensburg (full text))

The new Secretary of State. (New Secretary of State takes office) Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone took office in September, ending the extraordinary 16-year tenure of Cardinal Angelo Sodano as the Vatican’s #2 official. With his selection of a trusted collaborator to lead the Roman Curia, Pope Benedict made the most important in a series of changes that also included the appointments of India’s Cardinal Ivan Dias as prefect of the Congregation for Evangelization (Top Curial official headed for Naples archdiocese) and Brazil’s Cardinal Claudio Hummes as prefect of the Congregation for Clergy. (Cardinal Hummes to head Congregation for Clergy)

The trip to Turkey. (Between Two Worlds) A voyage that had been planned as an ecumenical encounter with the Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew I took on important new dimensions as the fallout from the Regensburg address stirred Islamic anger, and the government of Turkey pressed for Vatican support of its bid to join the European Union. Pope Benedict negotiated carefully through the minefield, continuing to stress the themes of that Regensburg address: religious freedom and the need for rational dialogue across religious lines.
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posted by Dr. Denice Hanley, DPM, M.Div. @ 9:34 AM