The Pope Benedict Code

When Pope Benedict XVI was elected in April 2005 much of the media in the English-speaking world reacted with hostility. As Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, he had for over twenty years been the Catholic ChurchÔÇÖs voice as upholder of orthodox doctrine. Media comment assumed that this meant he should be unpopular. But within just a few weeks, perceptions had changed, and the real person had been discovered: this was clearly a popular pastor, reaching out with a worldwide message at his inaugural Mass, cheered to the echo by over a million young people at World Youth Day, drawing huge crowds in St PeterÔÇÖs Square, sitting with First Communicants at a childrenÔÇÖs rally to teach them and answer their questions. The Holy Father emerged as a person of warmth and gentleness, communicating the Christian message with clarity, and emphasizing the hope and joy it can bring to the world.

For Catholics and non-Catholics alike, the person of the Pope is a fascinating one. In The Pope Benedict Code, we meet the man who is St PeterÔÇÖs successor, read what he actually says and discover the way he thinks and acts. From a boyhood in a traditionally Catholic family in Bavaria, through years as a professor, writer, and lecturer, to the years in Rome, his is a story worth discovering ÔÇô and he is a teacher whose message is worth hearing.