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Pope Benedict Xvi Biography & Facts

Pope Benedict XVI (Latin: Benedictus PP. XVI; Italian: Benedetto XVI; German: Benedikt XVI; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as pope occurred in the 2005 papal conclave that followed the death of Pope John Paul II. Benedict chose to be known as "Pope emeritus" upon his resignation, and he retained this title until his death in 2022.Ordained as a priest in 1951 in his native Bavaria, Ratzinger embarked on an academic career and established himself as a highly regarded theologian by the late 1950s. He was appointed a full professor in 1958 at the age of 31. After a long career as a professor of theology at several German universities, he was appointed Archbishop of Munich and Freising and created a cardinal by Pope Paul VI in 1977, an unusual promotion for someone with little pastoral experience. In 1981, he was appointed Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, one of the most important dicasteries of the Roman Curia. From 2002 until he was elected pope, he was also Dean of the College of Cardinals. Before becoming pope, he had been "a major figure on the Vatican stage for a quarter of a century"; he had had an influence "second to none when it came to setting church priorities and directions" as one of John Paul II's closest confidants.Benedict's writings were prolific and generally defended traditional Catholic doctrine, values, and liturgy. He was originally a liberal theologian but adopted conservative views after 1968. During his papacy, Benedict advocated a return to fundamental Christian values to counter the increased secularisation of many Western countries. He viewed relativism's denial of objective truth, and the denial of moral truths in particular, as the central problem of the 21st century. Benedict also revived several traditions, including the Tridentine Mass. He strengthened the relationship between the Catholic Church and art, promoted the use of Latin, and reintroduced traditional papal vestments, for which reason he was called "the pope of aesthetics". Benedict's handling of sexual abuse cases within the Catholic Church and opposition to usage of condoms in areas of high HIV transmission led to substantial criticism from public health officials, anti-AIDS activists, and victim's rights organizations.On 11 February 2013, Benedict announced his (effective 28 February 2013) resignation, citing a "lack of strength of mind and body" due to his advanced age. His resignation was the first by a pope since Gregory XII in 1415, and the first on a pope's initiative since Celestine V in 1294. He was succeeded by Francis on 13 March 2013 and moved into the newly renovated Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in Vatican City for his retirement. In addition to his native German language, Benedict had some level of proficiency in French, Italian, English, and Spanish. He also knew Portuguese, Latin, Biblical Hebrew, and Biblical Greek. He was a member of several social science academies, such as the French Académie des Sciences Morales et Politiques. He played the piano and had a preference for Mozart and Bach. Early life: 1927–1951 Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger (German: [ˈjoːzɛf ʔaˈlɔʏzi̯ʊs ˈʁatsɪŋɐ]) was born on 16 April, Holy Saturday, 1927 at Schulstraße 11 at 8:30 in the morning in his parents' home in Marktl, Bavaria, Germany. He was baptised the same day. He was the third and youngest child of Joseph Ratzinger Sr., a police officer, and Maria Ratzinger (née Peintner); his grand-uncle was the German priest-politician Georg Ratzinger. His mother's family was originally from South Tyrol (now in Italy). Benedict's elder brother, Georg, became a Catholic priest and was the former director of the Regensburger Domspatzen choir. His sister, Maria, who never married, managed her brother Joseph's household until she died in 1991.At the age of five, Ratzinger was in a group of children who welcomed the visiting Cardinal Archbishop of Munich, Michael von Faulhaber, with flowers. Struck by the cardinal's distinctive garb, he announced later that day that he wanted to be a cardinal. He attended the elementary school in Aschau am Inn, which was renamed in his honour in 2009. In 1939, aged 12, he enrolled in a minor seminary in Traunstein. This period lasted until the seminary was closed for military use in 1942, and the students were all sent home. Ratzinger returned to Traunstein. Wartime and ordination Ratzinger's family, especially his father, bitterly resented the Nazis, and his father's opposition to Nazism resulted in demotions and harassment of the family. Following his 14th birthday in 1941, Ratzinger was conscripted into the Hitler Youth – as membership was required by law for all 14-year-old German boys after March 1939 – but was an unenthusiastic member who refused to attend meetings, according to his brother. In 1941, one of Ratzinger's cousins, a 14-year-old boy with Down syndrome, was taken away by the Nazi regime and murdered during the Aktion T4 campaign of Nazi eugenics. In 1943, while still in seminary, he was drafted into the German anti-aircraft corps as Luftwaffenhelfer. Ratzinger then trained in the German infantry. As the Allied front drew closer to his post in 1945, he deserted back to his family's home in Traunstein after his unit had ceased to exist, just as American troops established a headquarters in the Ratzinger household. As a German soldier, he was interned in US prisoner of war camps, first in Neu-Ulm, then at Fliegerhorst Bad Aibling (shortly to be repurposed as Bad Aibling Station) where he was at the time of Victory in Europe Day, and released on 19 June 1945.Ratzinger and his brother Georg entered Saint Michael Seminary in Traunstein in November 1945, later studying at the Ducal Georgianum (Herzogliches Georgianum) of the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich. They were both ordained in Freising on 29 June 1951 by Cardinal Michael von Faulhaber of Munich – the same man Ratzinger had met as a child. He recalled: "at the moment the elderly Archbishop laid his hands on me, a little bird – perhaps a lark – flew up from the altar in the high cathedral and trilled a little joyful song". He celebrated his first Mass later that summer in Traunstein, at St. Oswald's Church.Ratzinger's 1953 dissertation was on Augustine of Hippo and was titled The People and the House of God in Augustine's Doctrine of the Church. His habilitation (which qualified him for a professorship) was on Bonaventure. It was completed in 1957 and he became a professor at Freising College in 1958. Encounter with Romano Guardini In his early twenties, Ratzinger was deeply influenced by the thought of Italian German philosopher Romano Guardini, who taught in Munich from 1946 to 1951 when Ratzinger was studying in Freising and later at the University of Munich. The intellectual a.... Discover the Pope Benedict Xvi popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Pope Benedict Xvi books.

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  • The Global War on Christians synopsis, comments

    The Global War on Christians

    John L. Allen, Jr.

    One of the most respected journalists in the United States and the bestselling author of The Future Church uses his unparalleled knowledge of world affairs and religious insight to...

  • Lent with Pope Benedict XVI synopsis, comments

    Lent with Pope Benedict XVI

    Pope Benedict XVI

    Accompany the Holy Father through the forty days of Lent and the octave of Easter with short daily reflections that will enrich your prayer and draw you closer to Jesus. These refl...

  • Subdued Fires synopsis, comments

    Subdued Fires

    Garry O'Connor

    Is this man "the Panzer Cardinal," or "God's Rottweiler," enforcer of Church discipline worldwide? Or is he a true visionary who has confronted the crisis of fa...

  • The Irony of Modern Catholic History synopsis, comments

    The Irony of Modern Catholic History

    George Weigel

    A powerful new interpretation of Catholicism's dramatic encounter with modernity, by one of America's leading intellectualsThroughout much of the nineteenth century, both secular a...

  • Triumph synopsis, comments

    Triumph

    H. W. Crocker

    A Catholic Classic UPDATED AND EXPANDED!For 2,000 years, Catholicismthe largest religion in the world and in the United Stateshas shaped global history on a scale unequaled by any...

  • Merchants in the Temple synopsis, comments

    Merchants in the Temple

    Gianluigi Nuzzi

    From a bestselling author with unprecedented access to Pope Francis, an investigative look at the recent financial scandals at the highest levels of the VaticanA veritable war is w...

  • The Rule of Benedict synopsis, comments

    The Rule of Benedict

    David Gibson

    There was no neutral response to the announcement that the "enforcer"Cardinal Joseph Ratzingerhad been elected Benedict XVI, the next pope of the Roman Catholic Church. Conservativ...

  • The Rise of Benedict XVI synopsis, comments

    The Rise of Benedict XVI

    John L. Allen, Jr.

    From the author of Conclave and All the Pope’s Men comes the story of Pope John Paul II’s last days, the behindthescenes dynamics within the College of Cardinals that led to the ch...

  • Vatican Pope a Liar a Defrauder synopsis, comments

    Vatican Pope a Liar a Defrauder

    Thomas Bayo

    Pope Benedict XVI Ratzinger and his number two man in Vatican, Archbishop Gianfranco Girotti, have been caught redhanded. Physical evidence with exhibits A and B are available for ...

  • Father Benedict synopsis, comments

    Father Benedict

    James Day

    Pope Benedict XVI is widely considered to be the greatest theologian and Catholic thinker of our time. n these pages, author James Day unpacks the voluminous teachings of Pope Bene...

  • Pope Benedict XVI synopsis, comments

    Pope Benedict XVI

    Daniel T. Michaels, Ph.D.

    This collection of writings reveals the Holy Father's beliefs on religious truth and freedom, Church and culture, the Eucharist, Christian unity, and ministry and service. These wo...

  • Pope Benedict XVI and the Politics of Modernity synopsis, comments

    Pope Benedict XVI and the Politics of Modernity

    MarcD. Guerra

    In Benedict XVI and the Politics of Modernity, distinguished scholars from North America and Europe examine Pope Benedict XVI‘s searching reflections on the challenges and prospect...

  • Catholic Social Teaching and Pope Benedict XVI synopsis, comments

    Catholic Social Teaching and Pope Benedict XVI

    Charles E. Curran

    Celebrated moral theologian Charles E. Curran examines and critiques Pope Benedict XVI’s contribution to Catholic social teaching in this Georgetown Digital Short, available exclus...

  • With God You Are Never Alone synopsis, comments

    With God You Are Never Alone

    Pope Benedict XVI

    For the first time, the 10 great speeches of Benedict XVI's pontificate are collected. From the first homily delivered as soon as he became pope to the last public hearing, the...

  • Running Toward Mystery synopsis, comments

    Running Toward Mystery

    Tenzin Priyadarshi & Zara Houshmand

    A revered Buddhist monk tells the bracing and beautiful story of a singular life compelled to contemplation, sharing lessons about the power of mentorship and an open mind  &#...

  • Popes Who Resigned synopsis, comments

    Popes Who Resigned

    Thomas J. Craughwell

    <p>On February 11, 2013, Pope Benedict XVI shocked Catholics and the world by announcing that he would resign from the papacy. It was the first papal resignation in 600 years...

  • Pope Benedict XVI synopsis, comments

    Pope Benedict XVI

    Stephen Mansfield

    Includes a new foreword on the resignation and legacy of Pope Benedict XVI.The sudden resignation of Pope Benedict XVI comes as the capstone to a papacy that that shocked some and ...

  • Covenant and Communion synopsis, comments

    Covenant and Communion

    Scott Hahn

    Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger's election as Pope Benedict XVI brought a worldclass biblical theologian to the papacy. There is an intensely biblical quality to his pastoral teaching an...

  • Heralds of the Second Coming synopsis, comments

    Heralds of the Second Coming

    Stephen Walford

    In the past 200 years, the Catholic Church has approved a series of private revelations with a deeply apocalyptic undercurrent. But what have the popes taught concerning these time...

  • The Dangers of Political Instrumentalization of International Judicial Organs synopsis, comments

    The Dangers of Political Instrumentalization of International Judicial Organs

    Stefan Kirchner

    The child abuse scandal has rocked the Catholic church and has triggered a strong response by the church leadership, first and foremost by Pope Benedict XVI. On 13 September 2011, ...

  • Pope Benedict Xvi Meets America synopsis, comments

    Pope Benedict Xvi Meets America

    Newscom

    Pope Benedict XVI began his first official visit as head of the Roman Catholic Church on April 15, 2008, arriving at Andrews Air Force Base aboard 'Shepherd One.' Benedict ...

  • The Benedict Proposal synopsis, comments

    The Benedict Proposal

    Joshua Brumfield

    How ought the church respond to the rise of a postChristian secular age? Should it retreat? What is the mission of the church in this context? Joseph Ratzinger's eucharistic ec...

  • Lives of The Popes- Reissue synopsis, comments

    Lives of The Popes- Reissue

    Richard P McBrien

    This pocket edition of Richard McBrien's acclaimed Lives of the Popes is a practical quick reference tool for scholars, students, and anyone needing just a few concise facts about ...

  • Environmental Justice and Climate Change synopsis, comments

    Environmental Justice and Climate Change

    Jame Schaefer

    During his papacy, Pope Benedict XVI was called ‘the green pope’ because of his ecological commitments in his writings, statements, and practical initiatives. Containing twelve ess...

  • Celebrating the Liturgy with Pope Benedict XVI. synopsis, comments

    Celebrating the Liturgy with Pope Benedict XVI.

    Logos: A Journal of Catholic Thought and Culture

    Even the New Yorker magazine has commented on the Holy Father celebrating Mass. A feature article of July 2005 titled "Vatican Notebook," though not exactly friendly, said, "Pope B...

  • In the Courts of Three Popes synopsis, comments

    In the Courts of Three Popes

    Mary Ann Glendon

    A rare firsthand account of the three popes who worked to modernize the Catholic Churchand to evangelize the modern worldfrom a renowned international lawyer, Harvard law professor...

  • The Dictatorship of Relativism synopsis, comments

    The Dictatorship of Relativism

    Gediminas T. Jankunas

    Pope Benedict XVI's experiences under Hitler's Naziism taught him the consequences of relativism and the denial of truth.

  • The Essential Pope Benedict XVI synopsis, comments

    The Essential Pope Benedict XVI

    John F. Thornton & Susan B. Varenne

    The Essential Pope Benedict XVI is “an outstanding collection of texts that takes us straight to the heart of Benedict XVI’s thoughts” (Alister McGrath).Introduction by D. Vincent ...

  • Jesus of Nazareth synopsis, comments

    Jesus of Nazareth

    Pope Benedict XVI & Joseph Ratzinger

    “This book is . . . my personal search ‘for the face of the Lord.’” –Benedict XVIIn this bold, momentous work, the Pope––in his first book written as Benedict XVI––seeks to salvage...

  • The Liturgical Vision of Pope Benedict XVI synopsis, comments

    The Liturgical Vision of Pope Benedict XVI

    Mariusz Biliniewicz

    This book presents and evaluates the liturgical vision of Pope Benedict XVI and the theological background underlying that vision. It describes the main features of Joseph Ratzinge...

  • The Legacy of Pope Benedict XVI synopsis, comments

    The Legacy of Pope Benedict XVI

    Charles A. Coulombe

    A concise account of one of the most epic developments in the modern Catholic churchthe resignation of Pope Benedict XVI.   Pope Benedict XVI’s precedentshattering announcemen...

  • The Crisis of Global Capitalism synopsis, comments

    The Crisis of Global Capitalism

    Adrian Pabst

    This collection of essays outlines a new political economy. Twenty years after the demise of Soviet communism, the global recession into which freemarket capitalism has plunged the...

  • The Thought of Pope Benedict XVI new edition synopsis, comments

    The Thought of Pope Benedict XVI new edition

    Aidan Nichols OP

    Aidan Nichols' timely book is the first fullscale investigation of Joseph Ratzinger's theology, from the 1950s to the present day. It presents a chronological account of th...

  • Sermon in a Sentence synopsis, comments

    Sermon in a Sentence

    Pope Benedict XVI

    Imagine some personal hours face to face with Pope Benedict XVI, one of the greatest Catholic thinkers and spiritual writers of the twentieth century. In this slim volume, hundreds...