The day Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, was introduced to the world as the new pope with the proclamation Habemus Papam from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica. Video: Vatican Media | Sachin jose ettiyil

In 1997, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, was asked if God chooses who becomes Pope. Here was his response: “I would not say so, in the sense that the Holy Spirit picks out the Pope…I would say that the Spirit does not exactly take control of the affair, but rather like a good educator, as it were, leaves us much space, much freedom, without entirely abandoning us. Thus the Spirit’s role should be understood in a much more elastic sense, not that he dictates the candidate for

The late Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, was born in Marktl, Germany, on 16 April 1927. At an early age, he discovered the beauty and truth of faith in Christ through his family’s spiritual heritage and their clear witness of goodness and hope, rooted in committed attachment to the Church. On 19 April 2005, he was elected as the 265th Pope, choosing the name “Benedict XVI”. | Vatican News