About Cardinal Ratzinger Who is Cardinal Ratzinger?
Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger is head of the Catholic Church’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, whose mission is to “to promote and safeguard the doctrine on the faith and morals throughout the Catholic world” (John Paul II). The CDF was originally called the Sacred Congregation of the Universal Inquisition as its duty was to defend the Church from heresy. It is the oldest of the Curia’s nine congregations. Cardinal Ratzinger was appointed Prefect of the Congregation by Pope John Paul II, and has been “putting the smackdown on heresy” since 1981. Biographical Details about Cardinal Ratzinger.
