Pope Benedict XV1 Who could ever have predicted when Joseph Alois Ratzinger was born on April 16th 1927 that he would ascend to such heights as the head of the Catholic church throughout the world. But apparently even as a young boy of ten, when he saw a visiting Archbishop, he announced that he too would someday want to be a cardinal. He was, in 2005, to step into the shoes of a very well respected Pope John Paul II. The last German Pope was Victor 11 who reigned from April 13, 1055 until July 28 1057. Joseph Ratzinger was born to Joseph Ratzinger, Sr., a police officer, and Maria Ratzinger and was their third and youngest child. His older brother was also a priest and his sister Maria, who remained unmarried all her life, managed Joseph’s home until her death in 1991. By his fourteenth birthday in 1941 Joseph Ratzinger enrolled in the Hitler Youth Movement, purely because at that time membership was legally required in 1939. He was never a devout member and refused to go to meetings and was supported in this by his father who was a bitter enemy of the Nazi regime as he believed it conflicted with the Catholic faith.By 1943, with World War II well under way, and with Germany at war with England and its leader, Winston Churchill, Ratzinger was drafted into the German anti-aircraft corps. Just before the end of the war, and as American troops were establishing headquarters in the family home, Ratzinger deserted his post but was still imprisoned as a POW but released just months later when the war in Europe ended in the summer of 1945.
After the war both Joseph and his brother Goerg returned to seminary college. The two brothers were ordained in Freisin in June 1951 by Cardinal Michael von Faulheber.After being ordained Ratzinger went on to be a professor at the University of Bonn in 1959. From 1962 through 1965 Ratzinger participated in the Second Vatican Council and in March 1977 he was appointed Archbishop of Munich and Freising. Then in November 1981, Pope John Paul II named Ratzinger Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. He was on his way to the Vatican.From quite early on it was assumed that Ratzinger was a serious contender for the Vatican should Pope Paul II become ill or die. Then upon the death of John Paul II, the Financial Times gave the odds of Ratzinger becoming pope as 7–1, the lead position. In April 2005, before his election as pope, he was identified as one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine. While Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Ratzinger repeatedly stated he would like to retire to a Bavarian village and dedicate himself to writing books. After the death of John Paul II in his private apartment, on April 2nd 2005, just 46 days short of his 85th birthday, Cardinal Ratzinger was elected as the successor to Pope John Paul II on the second day of the papal conclave after four ballots, the white smoke rose from the chimney high above the Vatican to inform the world that a new pope had been elected on 19th April 2005. Although in the early 1990s, Ratzinger had suffered a stroke, which slightly impaired his eyesight temporarily this was not an issue in voting him to the position of Pope.After being elected, Joseph Ratzinger chose the pontifical name Benedict, which in Latin means "the blessed", in honor of both Pope Benedict XV and Saint Benedict of Nursia.
In 2005 President George W Bush announced the designation of a Presidential Delegation to the Inaugural Mass of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI in April 24, 2005, his brother, Jeb Bush, Governor of Florida, was to lead the delegation. Unlike Pope John Paul II before him, Pope Benedict has not made as many pastoral trips outside the Vatican. So far he has visited his homeland, Germany, Poland ( the home of Pope John Paul II), Spain and Turkey. In Autumn 2006 Pope Benedict met with Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury and spiritual head of the Anglican Communion. On March 19, 2006, Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, a Mormon, received an invitation to attend the elevation of Boston Archbishop Sean O'Malley to cardinal at the Vatican.In June 2006, Pope Benedict XVI urged Christians to reject those who “falsify the Word of Christ,” which was seen as an allusion to the controversy over the novel the Da Vinci Code written by Dan Brown.Even though Pope Benedict is a gentle, soft spoken man who makes very few appearances around the world he has quickly become known for his outspoken comments on world affairs. On November 13, 2006, Pope Benedict XVI said the North Korean nuclear dispute, which involved President George W Bush and Kofi Annan, who were key players, should be resolved through negotiations. His visit to Turkey was initially overshadowed by the controversy about a lecture he had given at Regensburg. His visit was met by nationalist and Islamic protesters and the Pope was placed under an immense amount of security. Mrs. Laura Bush met in a private audience with Pope Benedict XVI, Thursday, February 9, 2006 at The Vatican. April 16th 2007 saw Pope Benedict XVI’s eightieth birthday. ABB |
