The author of the article presents the arguments quoted by Benedict XVI in his speeches attesting that theology has a future. The future of theology is related to the future of faith since faith needs theology and theology needs faith. Faith, on the other hand, is a response to the longing for truth, goodness, and beauty inherent in human nature, which can only be found in God. The question about God is the key question which depends on the discovery of the meaning of life and the world. Theology along with philosophy – obviously not a positivistic one that resigns from the study of the transcendence of being – searches for the full truth about human being and maintains human sensitivity to the full truth. Theology, as a fully-fledged science among other sciences, indicates that scientific truth participates in the Divine Truth, originates from the same source, from Logos, whose work is creation. When nowadays the search for truth is abandoned or ignored, theology discovers the resulting threats to the European culture. Theology teaches about God who spoke to the people, and not about someone who would only be a postulation of human thought. Therefore, the primary task of theology is to penetrate the revealed Word. Thus, theology developed on the basis of the principles and norms resulting from the Revelation of faith has a future, and is not solely based on criteria and norms common within other sciences, or based on patterns taken from the humanities.

Joseph Ratzinger, both as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and, above all, as Pope, contributed greatly to the legislative development and the implementation of Canon Law. His invitation has been especially important, as Supreme Pontiff, to the seminarians to love Canon Law. In this article we study his contribution to the canonical doctrine with the subjects developed in the speeches before the Ro-man Rota, in which He offers certain criteria to advance in the knowledge and praxis of Canon Law and rejects the errors that can create deviations. Particularly notewor-thy is the insistence on showing the pastoral value of Canon Law and the need to hold its close link both to charity and to truth. On the other hand, the Pope also pays attention to marriage, both in preparation for it and in the defence of its essential properties

German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, is one of the great-est Catholic theologians of the 20th and 21st century. The main field of his theological activity is fundamental theology, which is perceived by him as the area of a broadly understood dialogue on the credibility of Christianity in the modern world. This article attempts to analyze the views of Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI on the Christian identity of Europe. The various issues of this study are as follows: Europe as a phenomenon of cultural interaction; Right to the place of Christianity in the Europe of tomorrow; European crisis of values; European Homo oeconomicus and the Gospel; Dismissing former Eurocentrism; Courage in the struggles of the new face of Chris-tian Europe. In the conclusion the author emphasizes validity of Joseph Ratzinger’s/Benedict XVI’s thoughts on the future of Europe in the context of the ongoing changes in the European Union and the migration crisis.

Benedict XVI, as the Supreme Shepherd of the Church and the head of the Vatican state (Vatican City), maintained contacts with representatives of the authorities of Muslim countries or those dominated by Islamic culture. He supported and built good relations between representatives of different religions, including Islam, through openness and honesty in the interreligious dialogue and bearing witness to the essential values of Christianity and Islam – justice and peace. In the article, we indicated the essence, purpose and challenges of interreligious dialogue, especially dialogue with Islam. People and environments involved in its conduct should be guided by the idea of searching for the true good of man and society. At the same time, it is important to remain faithful to one’s own religious identity, especially on the doctrinal level. Dialogue, in fact, should aim, first of all, at seeking the truth and bearing witness to it. This will only be possible if you respect your own faith and show respect for the identity of the followers of Islam. In the dialogue with Islam, the most important is Almighty God, who must be given his rightful place. For faith in one God obliges His believers to be responsible for peace. Benedict XVI’s theory of dialogue found confirmation in the papal meetings, either with the “world of Islam” or with various bodies (ecclesiastical, political, people involved in the so-called dialogue of specialists). For Benedict XVI, the most important criterion for dialogue was fidelity to Christian identity.

This paper takes into account questions formulated by the Holy Mother. Her thought and consideration on the revealed word serves as pattern of theological thinking and key to understanding of the relationship between theology and other sciences. This study is based on the Church’s magisterial documents, papal teaching, as well as theological and philosophical statements. The matter of theology determines its principles, start point and methods. Its criteria consider the universal requirements of reason but, unlike in other sciences, are deeply and indispensably enrooted in ecclesial community. The purpose also distinguishes theology in the scientific world and confers particular meaning concerning its pragmatism, benefits and importance.

The Christian vision of love, so deeply personalistic and clearly emphasizing that the love of God and the love of neighbour cannot be opposed, has to take the social na-ture of man into account. If love is the centre of the Christian life and also points to the specificity of its vocation and mission, then it is impossible to imagine that this funda-mental life perspective does not find the right expression in relation to social life. This love should be expressed in a number of social attitudes, especially in those which are considered fundamental principles of social life. The ability to enact the principles of love is important in everyday social life. It involves multiple specific attitudes. This paper discusses – in the light of the encyclical Deus Caritas Est and Caritas in veritate by Pope Benedict XVI - the issue of love in three aspects: love in micro-relations, love and justice in macro-relations and love as a common good in macro-relations.

The Catholic image of Martin Luther in the course of the centuries evolved from the literally negative one during the time of the Reformation and the centuries that followed, through the theological attempts and historically in-depth analyses inspired by the ecumenical movement up to contemporary acceptance of several theological postulates. Contemporary movements of Roman-Catholic thinking of Luther well summarize historically vulnerable and dogmatically deepened opinions of the recent popes: John Paul II, Benedict XVI and Francis. Following the agreement texts of the Lutheran-Catholic Commission at the world forum, ecumenically open popes can find out in Martin Luther a profoundly religious man, the witness of the Gospel whose theological thought is still relevant and a challenge for the presently secularized world.