Pope Benedict XVI |
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Bishop of Rome | |
Benedict XVI in 2010
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Papacy began | 19 April 2005 |
Papacy ended | 28 February 2013 |
Predecessor | John Paul II |
Successor | Francis |
Orders | |
Ordination | 29 June 1951 by Michael von Faulhaber |
Consecration | 28 May 1977 by Josef Stangl |
Created Cardinal | 27 June 1977 by Paul VI |
Personal details | |
Birth name | Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger |
Born |
Marktl, Germany |
16 April 1927
Nationality | German (with Vatican citizenship) |
Residence | Mater Ecclesiae, Vatican City |
Parents | Joseph Ratzinger, Sr. and Maria Ratzinger (née Peintner) |
Previous post |
Archbishop of Munich and Freising (1977–1982) Cardinal-Priest of Santa Maria Consolatrice al Tiburtino (1977–1993) President of the International Theological Commission (1981–2005) Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (1981–2005) President of the Pontifical Biblical Commission (1981–2005) Cardinal-Bishop of Velletri-Segni (1993–2005) Dean of the College of Cardinals (2002–2005) Cardinal-Bishop of Ostia (2002–2005) |
Motto | Cooperatores veritatis (cooperators of the truth) |
Signature | |
Coat of arms | |
Papal styles of Pope Benedict XVI |
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Reference style | His Holiness |
Spoken style | Your Holiness |
Religious style | Pope Emeritus |
Ordination history of Pope Benedict XVI | |
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Diaconal ordination
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Ordained by | Johannes Baptist Neuhäusler (Mün. & Freis. aux) |
Date of ordination | 29 October 1950 |
Priestly ordination
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Ordained by | Michael Card von Faulhaber (Mün. & Freis.) |
Date of ordination | 29 June 1951 |
Episcopal consecration
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Principal consecrator | Josef Stangl (Würzburg) |
Co-consecrators |
Rudolf Graber (Regensburg) Ernst Tewes (Mün. & Freis. aux) |
Date of consecration | 28 May 1977 |
Cardinalate
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Elevated by | Pope Paul VI |
Date of elevation | 27 June 1977 |
Bishops consecrated by Pope Benedict XVI as principal consecrator
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Alberto Bovone | 12 May 1984 |
Zygmunt Zimowski | 25 May 2002 |
Josef Clemens | 6 January 2004 |
Bruno Forte | 8 September 2004 |
Mieczysław Mokrzycki | 29 September 2007 |
Francesco Giovanni Brugnaro | 29 September 2007 |
Gianfranco Ravasi | 29 September 2007 |
Tommaso Caputo | 29 September 2007 |
Sergio Pagano | 29 September 2007 |
Vincenzo Di Mauro | 29 September 2007 |
Gabriele Giordano Caccia | 12 September 2009 |
Franco Coppola | 12 September 2009 |
Pietro Parolin | 12 September 2009 |
Raffaello Martinelli | 12 September 2009 |
Giorgio Corbellini | 12 September 2009 |
Savio Hon Tai-Fai | 5 February 2011 |
Marcello Bartolucci | 5 February 2011 |
Celso Morga Iruzubieta | 5 February 2011 |
Antonio Guido Filipazzi | 5 February 2011 |
Edgar Peña Parra | 5 February 2011 |
Charles John Brown | 6 January 2012 |
Marek Solczyński | 6 January 2012 |
Angelo Vincenzo Zani | 6 January 2013 |
Fortunatus Nwachukwu | 6 January 2013 |
Georg Gänswein | 6 January 2013 |
Nicolas Henry Marie Denis Thevenin | 6 January 2013 |
Pope Benedict XVI (Latin: Benedictus XVI; Italian: Benedetto XVI; German: Benedikt XVI; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger; German pronunciation: [ˈjoːzɛf ˈalɔʏzi̯ʊs ˈʁatsɪŋɐ]; born 16 April 1927) served as Pope from 2005 until his resignation in 2013. Benedict's election occurred in the papal conclave following the death of Pope John Paul II. Since his resignation, Benedict holds the title of Pope Emeritus.
Ordained as a priest in 1951 in his native Bavaria, Ratzinger established himself as a highly regarded university theologian by the late 1950s and was appointed a full professor in 1958. After a long career as an academic and professor of theology at several German universities, he was appointed Archbishop of Munich and Freising and 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 II's closest confidants.