What was his role under the previous Pope, John Paul II?
In 1981 Ratzinger became Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, his role was to enforce Catholic orthodoxy, which is why the tabloids have dubbed him “God’s Rottweiler.” With views similar to Pope John Paul II, Ratzinger took a hard line on topics such as birth control, homosexuality, and the ordination of women into the priesthood. Ratzinger decried the use of condoms as an acceptable form of protection against HIV, stating that such an approach “would result in at least the facilitation of evil.” Critics believe that he was instrumental in covering up the Church’s child sex abuse scandal and that he ignored allegations made by nine different people against Father Marcial Maciel. What is he promising now that he’s Pope? Although Catholic doctrine stresses that there can only be one religion, the Pope is attempting to create bonds with other global religions. However, it is unclear at this stage how far he might go to do this. As a defender of Catholic doctrine Pope
