The election of Pope Benedict XVI means many things: a resounding affirmation of the pontificate of John Paul the Great; an overwhelming vote of confidence in Joseph Ratzinger, one of the great Christian minds and spirits of our time; dynamic continuity in the worlds oldest office.
When I was confirmed at age fifteen, I took St. John the Baptist as my confirmation saint. A voice crying out in the wilderness, I thought, full of adolescent pride. By Lent of 2003 I was a little older and a little more humble if only as a result of years of sin and failure to do much crying out...
These are Father Joseph Fessios answers to a series of questions posed about Pope Benedict XVI. They were answered on April 21, 2005, before he got on an airplane to fly to Rome for the formal installation of Pope Benedict XVI.
Far from a 'Rottweiler,' the new pope is a Mozart man, a listener with a keen mind and a good heart.
Born in Bavaria on Holy Saturday of 1927, Joseph Ratzingers life has been entirely within and for the Church, which, he is convinced, is the way of greatest service to the world. This and much else become evident in his remarkable account by Ignatius, Milestones: Memoirs 1927-1977, which takes the reader from his childhood to his appointment as Archbishop of Munich. (note: this review was originally published in January 1999).
Benedict XVI: The name is the program, and the name is the man.
The non-stop television coverage of Pope John Paul IIs death, and the retelling of his life as the final spark of his vibrant personality flickered and died, has dramatically brought into focus the profound impact and significance of this man from Poland. From the unprecedented gathering of mourners kings and presidents, rich and poor it is clear that his influence extended far beyond the Roman Catholic Church.
In his letter marking the close of the Jubilee year, Pope John Paul II wrote, I have often stopped to look at the long queues of pilgrims waiting patiently to go through the Holy Door. In each of them I tried to imagine the story of a life, made up of joys, worries, sufferings; the story of someone whom Christ had met and who in dialogue with Him, was setting out again on a journey of hope.
The San Francisco socialite had it all 10 children, friends, wealth but she traded it in for life in a convent. Fifteen years later, Ann Miller remains steadfast in her vows of seclusion, poverty, chastity and obedience.
