Who Is Pope Benedict XVI?

Pope Benedict XVI, whose real name is Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, is a very important figure in Catholicism. The Vatican said Wednesday that he was “very sick” and asked for prayers.

From April 19, 2005, until February 28, 2013, when he resigned, the pope emeritus was in charge. He told Reuters that he quit his job because of his health.

Who Is Pope Benedict XVI?

Britannica says that Ratzinger was born in Germany in the year 1927. A few years later, the Nazi party took over the country, and his parents did not agree with the new government. Britannica said that after he went to seminary, he was forced to join the Hitler Youth in 1941. He was then drafted into the German army in 1943 and served in an antiaircraft unit in Bavaria before being sent to Hungary in 1945 to set tank traps. He quit the army in April of that year, and American troops took him prisoner for a short time.

Who Is Pope Benedict XVI
Who Is Pope Benedict XVI

After World War II ended, he became a professor and started teaching theology at different universities. He also wrote theological works that caught the attention of Catholic bishops, according to Britannica. Ratzinger’s theology used to be more progressive, but as he wrote more about theology, he became more conservative. He started to disagree with liberation theology and pushed for more people to use the Traditional Latin Mass.

The Vatican’s biography of him says that he saw his calling as one in theology. He took part in the Second Vatican Council and was the head of the group that wrote the Catechism of the Catholic Church. He was also the head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.The Vatican’s biography said that his theological writings are still important today and that they had a big effect on how Catholicism’s theology has changed over the years. The Vatican says, “As the years have gone by, his many detailed publications have continued to come out quickly, serving as a point of reference for Catholics and especially those who study advanced theology.”

After Pope John Paul II died, Cardinal Ratzinger, who was then a cardinal, became the pope. He decided to be called Benedict, which means “blessed.” Reuters says that while he was pope, he was both praised for his theological work and criticised. People didn’t like what he said about Islam, so he went on a trip that was called “a fence-mending visit” and included prayers with Istanbul’s grand mufti at the Blue Mosque, which faces Mecca.

At the moment, Benedict is 95 years old and lives in the Vatican.

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