Please pray for the repose of the soul of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who died on New Year’s Eve.
Joseph Ratzinger was born on April 16, 1927, in Marktl am Inn, Germany. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 29, 1951 for the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising. For many years, he served as a professor of theology at Tübingen and Regensburg, and distinguished himself as a scholarly author. He was a peritus (appointed expert) at the Second Vatican Council.
Ordained to the Episcopate on May 28, 1977, having been appointed archbishop of his home diocese, he was created Cardinal on June 27 of that same year.
From 1982 to 2005, he served alongside St. John Paul II as Prefect of the then-Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
He was elected Pope on April 19, 2005, and served for almost eight years, becoming the first pope in over 700 years to renounce the office, which he did on February 28, 2013.
May he rest in the peace of the Lord, awaiting a share in Christ’s Resurrection.
(text from the Diocese of Pembroke)
(image from Zenit - français)
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