Vatican City, Jan 14, 2020 / 05:58 am
Archbishop Georg Ganswein, the private secretary of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, said Tuesday the former pontiff was not informed he would be presented as co-author of a new book on priestly celibacy and that Benedict has asked for his name and photo to be removed from the cover.
According to the German-language news agency KNA, Ganswein said Jan. 14 that he had called Cardinal Robert Sarah that morning, at Benedict's request, to ask the book's publisher to remove the signature of the pope emeritus from the introduction and conclusion, because he had not co-authored them.
Ganswein said that the chapter in the main part of the book is, however, "100 percent Benedict," according to KNA. "It was a misunderstanding - without questioning Cardinal Sarah's good intentions," Ganswein said.
The book, "From the Depths of Our Hearts," is to be released in the United States in February, and will consist of chapters written individually by Benedict and Sarah, as well as an introduction and conclusion reportedly credited jointly to them in the French edition, although the text has not yet been published. Its French release is scheduled for Jan. 15.