EJP | In Depth | Benedict's 'past' not hurled

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Benedict's 'past' not hurled

Updated: 18/Aug/2005 16:51

Benedict XVI

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Pope Benedict XVI, making his first visit back to Germany since his election, has never hidden his youthful involvement with the Hitler Youth, nor has it ever been held against him.

Roman Catholics are much more interested in the pope’s reputation as the Church’s doctrinal enforcer during his 24 years as head of the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

Like most young men of his generation, the pope was swept up in the Nazi tide, albeit briefly. But he has been widely praised by Jewish organizations for his stand against anti-Semitism throughout his career at the Vatican and his election as pope following John Paul II’s death in April was warmly greeted by Israel and Jewish groups in the United States.

He has vowed since becoming pope to pursue better relations with Jews, following the lead set by his Polish predecessor.

A Hitler Youth member in summer uniform

Born in the Bavarian town of Marktl am Inn on April 16, 1927, the former Joseph Ratzinger entered a seminary in 1939 to begin his training as a priest just as World War II was starting.

He recalled that he did not enroll in the Hitler Youth as soon as he was eligible but it quickly became hard to avoid. "In order to qualify for the reduction in schooling fees that I needed, you had to prove you had paid a visit to the Hitler Youth," he said in his autobiography.

So he reluctantly joined up, along with most Germans of his age.

Most experts agree he would have had little choice -- anyone who refused found life for them and their families was made extremely uncomfortable.

In 1943, with the war raging, Benedict XVI was drafted into the German anti-aircraft corps but months later he reached military age and was attached to a labour detail commanded by men he described as "fanatical ideologues who terrorised us".

As the conflict moved into its final stages he underwent basic infantry training but illness kept him away from the battlefields and as the Allies approached, Benedict XVI deserted the army and returned to southern Germany.

US troops briefly held him as a prisoner of war, but he was released in June 1945, more than a month after Germany surrendered.

He was ordained priest in 1951, spent much of his early career as a theology professor and became archbishop of Munich in March 1977. Four months later Paul VI made him a cardinal.

Day in history

24 July 1934
The Nazis attempt to overthrow the Austrian government. Chancellor Dollfus is assassinated, but the putsch failed and Kurt von Schuschnigg was appointed Chancellor. He in turn tried his best to curtail Nazi influence in Austria.

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