A:
At the insistance of Pope Pius IX, the First Vatican Council in 1870 decided, by a substantial majority, to declare papal infallibility to be a tenet of the Catholic faith. Pius did not get everything he had wished for, as the cardinals sharply distinguishing infallibility from inerrancy, and limited his infallibility to ex cathedra statements concerned with faith and morals.
No, he would then be Pope Emeritus and not pope.
No, Benedict XVI is no longer the reigning pope so is not considered as infallible.
The Pope is only infallible when he speaks ex cathedra on matters of faith and morals.
The Pope is said to be infallible in these circumstances.
That the Pope is infallible.
Infallible is the word to describe when a pope speaks ex cathedra in matters of faith and morals.
This is actually an incorrect assertion. Catholics believe that the Pope is infallible when speaking Ex Cathedra, or From the Seat of Peter. This means that when the Pope is speaking as the Head of the Catholic Church on Catholic Doctrine then the Pope is infallible. For example if the Pope were to say tomorrow that the sky is purple, this would not count as Ex Cathedra and would not be infallible. The idea comes from the belief that the Pope is chosen by the Holy Spirit as St. Peter's successor.
probably, or probably not.......
Encyclicals are not considered infallible teachings by the Catholic Church. They are authoritative documents written by the Pope to address specific issues, but they are not considered infallible statements of doctrine.
The pope is only infallible when speaking ex cathedra(from the chair) and only in matters of faith and morals and only after years of study and consultation with all the bishops. It has only been invoked twice in recent centuries - the doctrine of the Assumption of Mary and the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. However, when a pope declares a person to be a saint it is also considered infallible.
When the pope speaks ex cathedra - from the chair - on matters of faith and morals he is considered as infallible. In other words, he cannot pronounce an erroneous statement. It has been invoked only a few times in history. However, it also is an infallible statement when the pope declares a saint.
Papal encyclicals are not considered infallible teachings in the Catholic Church. They are authoritative documents that express the Pope's teachings and opinions on various issues, but they are not considered infallible unless they meet specific criteria outlined by the Church.