The Road to Benedict XVI

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was born on April 16, 1927 in a farming family in Bavaria in rural Germany. He has an elder brother and an elder sister.

At the very young age of 14 years, Joseph was forced to join Hitler's army. However, he left the army and joined a seminary at Traustein for priestly studies.

In 1951, both Joseph and his brother Georg were ordained as priests.

In 1977, Fr Joseph Ratzinger was made archbishop of Munich by Pope Paul VI. He was made Cardinal the same year.

In 1981, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was appointed the Prefect (head) of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

From the year 2002, Cardinal Ratzinger has been Dean of the College of Cardinals.

No one was as close to Pope John Paul II as Cardinal Ratzinger was. He was the pope's main assistant and companion. He held long discussions with the pope on matters of the Church's position and teaching.

With the deep vacuum created by Pope John Paul II's demise, the Church was in need of a pontiff with such strong intellect as well as administrative and scholarly skills as Pope John Paul II had.

On April 18, 2005, the College of Cardinals entered the conclave in the Sistine Chapel to elect a new pope. The College was comprised of 115 cardinals who were eligible to vote in the papal election, being aged below 80 years.

The cardinals from India who attended the conclave were: Cardinal Varkey Vithayathil, Major archbishop and head of the Syro-Malabar Church; Cardinal Ivan Dias, archbishop of Mumbai; Cardinal Telesphore Toppo, archbishop of Ranchi.

On April 19, 2005, the College of Cardinals elected Cardinal Ratzinger as the 265th head of the Roman Catholic Church on just the second day of the voting, making it one of the fastest papal elections ever in history.

Minutes later, the new pope addressed the cheering crowd: "Dear brothers and sisters: After the great Pope John Paul II, the cardinals have elected me - a simple, humble worker in the Lord's vineyard. That the Lord can work and act even with insufficient means consoles me, and above all I trust in your prayers. In the joy of the risen Lord, and trusting in his permanent help, we go forward. The Lord will help us and Mary, his holy mother, stands on our side. Thank you."

Following his election as Pope, Benedict XVI celebrated a Holy Mass with the College of Cardinals on April 20, 2005 in the Sistine Chapel. While thanking the cardinals who elected him, the pope said that he could feel John Paul II's hands holding his, saying: "Do not be afraid!"

The newly elected pope was inaugurated in a beautiful ceremony at the Vatican on April 24, 2005. Millions around the world watched the ceremony telecast globally, and nearly 400,000 people watched the programme at the Vatican, direct and on giant television screens.

Traditional rituals marked the installation ceremony that started with the pope elect's praying at the tomb of St Peter, followed by the Holy Mass. As was done at the funeral of Pope John Paul II, the Holy Mass was said at an altar set up on the stairs of St Peter's Basilica.

During the Mass, two decisive moments took place when two cardinals adorned the new pope with the symbols of papal authority: first a cardinal placed the Pallium (a shawl) around the pope and then another cardinal ornamented him the Papal Ring known as the Fisherman's Ring.

Pope Benedict XVI in his homily requested the faithful to "pray for me, that I may learn to love the Lord more and more. Pray for me, that I may learn to love his flock more and more." He sent his wishes to other religions and to believers and non-believers alike.

"Do not be afraid! Open wide the doors for Christ!" - Pope Benedict said referring to Pope John Paul II's homily at his inauguration 27 years ago. To the world's youth, Pope Benedict said: "Do not be afraid of Christ! He takes nothing away, and he gives you everything. When we give ourselves to him, we receive a hundredfold in return. Yes, open, open wide the doors to Christ – and you will find true life. Amen."

Following the ceremony, the new pope got into his Popemobile to reach near the huge crowd that was cheering him. The pope waved at them, and as he passed by them conferring his blessings on them, the crowd clamoured to take snaps of him. Many supporters held out large banners that read: "See you in Mexico!" "Welcome to Germany!" "America loves you!"

The events marked the highpoint of a remarkable month in the history of the Roman Catholic Church.

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