Pope Benedict XVI

Pope Benedict XVI Latin Benedictus XVI Italian Benedetto XVI German Benedikt XVI born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger German ˈjoːzɛf ʔaˈlɔʏziʊs ˈʁatsɪŋɐ 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 Benedicts election as pope occurred in the 2005 papal conclave that followed the death of Pope John Paul II Benedict chose to be known by the title pope emeritus upon his resignation 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 his election as pope he was also Dean of the College of Cardinals Prior to becoming pope he was a major figure on the Vatican stage for a quarter of a century he had an influence second to none when it came to setting church priorities and directions as one of John Paul IIs closest confidants He lived in Rome from 1981 until his death in 2022 Description above from the Wikipedia article Pope Benedict XVI licensed under CCBYSA full list of contributors on Wikipedia