Benedict XVI asked that his private documents be destroyed "without exceptions"

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Pope Emeritus

, who died on December 31 at the age of 95, asked his personal secretary, Monsignor

, to destroy his private writings “without exceptions”, according to what he himself narrates in his next book.

"There are those who have asked me what I will do, after the death of Benedict XVI, with his documents. In reality, this is not a problem for me since I have received precise instructions from him, with delivery instructions that oblige me in conscience to respect, about his library, the manuscripts of his books, the documentation about the Council and his correspondence", writes Gänswein.

The German archbishop, Ratzinger's closest collaborator since 2003, specified that "as far as the rest of his writings are concerned, his fate is marked."

"Private pages of all kinds must be destroyed. This must be done without exceptions and without loopholes,"

he assures that the Pontiff emeritus told him.

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Gänswein will publish the book "Nient'altro che la verità" (Nothing but the truth) on January 12 to respond to "the slander and dark maneuvers" that tried "in vain" to darken the legacy of the pontiff, who died in the Vatican monastery where he lived for the last decade of his life after his historic resignation in 2013.

In its pages, the German monsignor reproaches the successor,

, the currently "reigning" pope, for some of his decisions, such as putting a stop to masses in Latin, something highly criticized by the most conservative sectors of the Catholic Church.

He also regrets that he was removed from his side despite being the prefect of the Papal Household, in charge of the pontiffs' agenda, and that from one day to the next he entrusted him with the task of taking care of Ratzinger in his retirement in the Mater Ecclesiae monastery.

he says Francisco told him.

Among many other things, Gänswein confirms and laments in his pages the existence of currents or "fans" (he uses the term "tifoserie", in Italian soccer fans) within the Vatican.

"In effect, I believe that the most correct analysis should indicate as a problem, not so much the coexistence of two Popes, one reigning and the other emeritus, but the birth and development of two fans, since with the passage of time (Ratzinger) realizes more and more that they were indeed two visions of the Church", he affirms.

And he adds: "These two fans - each one based on affirmations, gestures or impressions about the attitude of Francis and Benedict, moreover often with entirely gratuitous inventions - have created that tension that later reverberated on those who were not sufficiently aware of ecclesiastical dynamics.

In the last decade,

and the most conservative wing has often resorted to the legacy of Benedict XVI to attack Francis, although both always expressed respect reciprocal.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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