In an explosive interview with the German version of Vatican Radio last October 26, 2016, Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, said that “for the first time in the history of the Church we have the case of two legitimate living popes.”

This is the first time that a high-ranking Vatican official has publicly acknowledged the highly-unusual situation of the coexistence of two popes.   Muller continued:

Certainly only Pope Francis is THE Pope, but Benedict is the emeritus, so somehow he is still tied to the papacy. This unprecedented situation needs to be addressed theologically and spiritually. On how to do it, there are different opinions. I have shown that even with all the diversity that relate to the person and the character – which are given by nature – that the internal link must also be made visible. “

When the…