New Biography of Pope Benedict XVI

This February will mark nine years since the historic renunciation of Pope Benedict XVI. Joseph Ratzinger would have gone down in history as a great theologian without his rise to the chair of St. Peter, although through his papal ministry he became a teacher of the world. The power of Benedict’s writing speaks for itself, though his life also witnesses to the power of truth and service.

Peter Seewald, who edited many interview books with Ratzinger, before, during, and after his pontificate, has written a thorough biography in two volumes: Benedict XVI: A Life (Bloomsbury Continuum, Vol. 1, 2020; Vol. 2, 2021). With Seewald’s unparalleled access to the pontiff, the strength of his biography comes from bringing Benedict’s personality to the forefront, helping us to get to know the great theologian-pope better, while gaining insight into the providentially guided trajectory of his life...