Stasi Spied on 'critical' Pope for Two Decades
East Germany's secret police, the Stasi, spied on Pope Benedict XVI for more than two decades, regarding him as one of the "sharpest critics of communism", the German newspaper, Bild am Sonntag, reported yesterday.
It published excerpts of files showing that communist agents had closely monitored the former German cardinal Joseph Ratzinger from 1974. His close friendship with the late Polish Pope John Paul II was regarded by the Stasi as being particularly dangerous. It cited their support for "revolutionary developments" taking place in Poland.
It published excerpts of files showing that communist agents had closely monitored the former German cardinal Joseph Ratzinger from 1974. His close friendship with the late Polish Pope John Paul II was regarded by the Stasi as being particularly dangerous. It cited their support for "revolutionary developments" taking place in Poland.
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