EWTN Vatican Bureau reports (June 24, 2026) that the Vatican Publishing House has released an English edition of Benedict XVI’s private homilies under the title “The Lord Holds Us by the Hand.” The article presents this collection as an edifying example of theological continuity and a model for personal relationship with Christ, while carefully omitting the complete absence of supernatural reality and doctrinal substance in these modernist meditations.
The article’s central thesis – that these private homilies are a guide for “today’s Christians” – is itself a condemnation of the post-conciliar religion: a subjective, naturalistic piety reduced to psychological accompaniment, entirely divorced from the supernatural mission of the Church, the salvific necessity of the Most Holy Sacrifice, and the reality of eternal judgment.
A “Private” Religion Without Sacrifice or Supernatural Reality
The homilies were delivered during private Masses in the Apostolic Palace or the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery – settings that already reveal the post-conciliar eclipse of the papal office. The article states the homilies were “focused on **developing a personal relationship with Jesus Christ**,” a thoroughly modernist and naturalistic cliché. What is completely omitted is any mention of the propitiatory nature of the Mass, the state of grace, mortal sin, conversion, the Real Presence as a dogma demanding adoration and reparation, or the reality of hell.
In the integral Catholic tradition, the Mass is not a tool for “personal relationship” but the unbloody renewal of Calvary for the remission of sins (Council of Trent). That these homilies are offered as a model of piety without any reference to these supernatural finalities reveals the very essence of the conciliar religion: a naturalistic, psychological cult of man seeking self-fulfillment.
Linguistic and Theological Emptiness of “Accompaniment”
The article highlights that Benedict’s homilies “**highlight his focus on the person of Christ as an accompanying figure**”. The term “accompanying figure” is a hallmark of modernist pastoral jargon, replacing the dogmatic proclamation of Christ as King, Judge, Redeemer, and the only Way to eternal salvation. Pius XI in *Quas Primas* teaches that Christ reigns over all nations and individuals, and that public and private life must be subject to His royal authority. The reduction of Christ to a mere “accompanying figure” is a direct denial of His regal dignity and the supernatural end of man.
This linguistic sleight of hand substitutes the objective worship of God with a subjective, emotional “walking together,” which is the theological core of false ecumenism and religious indifferentism condemned by the pre-conciliar Magisterium.
Theological Continuity of Joseph Ratzinger’s Apostasy
The article praises the book as an “example of the **continuity of the late pope’s theological work** since his time as Joseph Ratzinger”. This continuity is precisely the Josephinist-Modernist trajectory: from the dismantling of doctrine as prefect of the former Holy Office to the promulgation of religious freedom (*Dignitatis Humanae*) and the eclipse of the social reign of Christ the King. The very fact that these homilies are presented as a model for the faithful demonstrates that the post-conciliar “church” is a wholly novel, naturalistic entity, not the perennial Catholic Church.
The article’s claim that the book “also highlights his focus on the person of Christ” is a profound deception. The Christ of modernism is a symbol, not the God-Man who will judge the living and the dead. The omission of Christ’s warnings about mortal sin, the necessity of baptism, and the reality of damnation is not accidental; it is the necessary consequence of a religion without dogma.
The Cult of a “Private” Pope and the Denial of Papal Authority
The homilies are from both Benedict’s time as “pope” and after his resignation – a situation without precedent in Catholic tradition. The article treats this “private” phase as equally spiritually profitable, thereby reducing the papacy to a personality cult rather than the divinely instituted office of teaching, governing, and sanctifying. The true Church teaches that the papacy is an office for the salvation of souls, not a platform for private theological reflections. The very existence of a publishing enterprise promoting the “private” thoughts of a retired “pope” is a testament to the naturalistic personality-worship that has replaced supernatural faith.
Architects of the Neo-Church: Gänswein and Lombardi
The inclusion of a preface by Archbishop Georg Gänswein and an introduction by Fr. Federico Lombardi S.J. – both deeply embedded in the structures of the conciliar sect – further exposes the nature of this project. These figures are not guardians of Tradition but functionaries of the post-conciliar apparatus, promoting a version of Catholicism that is compatible with the world. Their endorsement confirms that these homilies are not a call to supernatural conversion but a reinforcement of the modernist status quo.
The Omission of the Church’s Supernatural Mission
At no point does the article mention the necessity of the Church for salvation, the obligation to convert heretics and schismatics, or the social reign of Christ the King over states. The homilies are presented as a purely spiritual, interior piety – a religion without the visible, authoritative, and dogmatic marks of the One True Church. This is the religion of the United Nations, not the religion of St. Pius X or Pope Pius XI.
Conclusion: A Textbook of Naturalistic Modernism
The publication of Benedict XVI’s private homilies in English is not a service to the faithful but a further immersion into the naturalistic, subjectivist religion of modernism. By promoting a Christ who is merely an “accompanying figure” and a piety devoid of sacrifice, dogma, or the supernatural order, the conciliar structures reveal their complete break with the integral Catholic faith. The pre-conciliar Magisterium, from the *Syllabus of Errors* to *Lamentabili Sane Exitu*, has condemned such errors. This book is their fruit – and a call to reject this neo-church entirely and return to the immutable Tradition of the true Catholic Church, outside of which there is no salvation.
Source:
Vatican publishes Pope Benedict XVI's private homilies in English (ewtnnews.com)
Date: 24.06.2026