Benedict XVI is theologically conservative, and his teaching and prolific
writings defend traditional Catholic doctrine and values. After a long
career as an internationally noted academic, serving as a professor of
theology at various German universities, he was appointed Archbishop of
Munich and Freising and cardinal by Pope Paul VI in 1977. In 1981, he
settled in Rome when he became Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine
of the Faith, one of the most important offices of the Roman Curia. At the
time of his election as Pope, he was also Dean of the College of Cardinals,
and as such the primus inter pares among the cardinals.

During his papacy, Benedict XVI has emphasized what he sees as a need for
Europe to return to fundamental Christian values in response to increasing
de-Christianisation and secularisation in many developed countries. For
this reason, he proclaims relativism's denial of objective truth-and more
particularly, the denial of moral truths-as the central problem of the
21st century. He teaches the importance for the Catholic Church and for
humanity of contemplating God's redemptive love and has reaffirmed the
"importance of prayer in the face of the activism and the growing
secularism of many Christians engaged in charitable work." The Pope has
also revived a number of traditions, and notably given the Tridentine
Mass a more prominent position.

Pope Benedict was also the founder and patron of the Ratzinger Foundation,
a charitable organisation, which makes money from the sale of books and
essays written by the Pope, in order to fund scholarships and bursaries
for students across the world.

Benedict XVI was elected Pope at the age of 78. He is the oldest person
to have been elected Pope since Pope Clement XII (1730-40). He had
served longer as a cardinal than any Pope since Benedict XIII (1724-30).
He is the eighth German Pope, the seventh having been Pope Stephen IX
in 1057. The last Pope named Benedict was Benedict XV, an Italian who
reigned from 1914 to 1922, during World War I (1914-18).

Born in 1927 in Marktl am Inn, Bavaria, Germany, Ratzinger had a
distinguished career as a university theologian before being appointed
Archbishop of Munich and Freising by Pope Paul VI (1963-78). Shortly
afterwards, he was made a cardinal in the consistory of 27 June 1977.
He was appointed Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the
Faith by Pope John Paul II in 1981 and was also assigned the honorific
title of the cardinal bishop of Velletri-Segni on 5 April 1993.

In 1998, he was elected sub-dean of the College of Cardinals. And on 30
November 2002, he was elected dean, taking, as is customary, the title
of Cardinal bishop of the suburbicarian diocese of Ostia. He was the
first Dean of the College elected Pope since Paul IV (1555-59) and the
first cardinal bishop elected Pope since Pius VIII (1829-30).

Even before becoming Pope, Ratzinger was one of the most influential men
in the Roman Curia, and was a close associate of John Paul II. As Dean
of the College of Cardinals, he presided over the funeral of John Paul II
and over the Mass immediately preceding the 2005 conclave in which he
was elected. During the service, he called on the assembled cardinals to
hold fast to the doctrine of the faith. He was the public face of the
church in the sede vacante period, although, technically, he ranked below
the camerlengo in administrative authority during that time. Like his
predecessor, Benedict XVI affirms traditional Catholic doctrine.

In addition to his native German, Benedict XVI fluently speaks Italian,
French, English, Spanish, Latin, and also has a knowledge of Portuguese.
He can read Ancient Greek and biblical Hebrew. He has stated that his
first foreign language is French. He is a member of a large number of
academies, such as the French Académie des sciences morales et politiques.
He plays the piano and has a preference for Mozart and Bach.
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