Benedict XVI, formerly Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, presided at the funeral of Pope John Paul II as the Dean of the College of Cardinals, a post he had held since November 2002. In addition, he had been the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, and the President of the Biblical Commission since 1981. From 1986-1992, he served as President of the Commission for the Preparation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Joseph Ratzinger was born on April 16, 1927, in Marktl am Inn, Germany, into a traditional family of farmers from lower Bavaria. His adolescent years were spent in Traunstein. He served in the auxiliary anti-aircraft service in the last months of the World War II. He completed seminary studies at the University of Munichand was ordained a priest on June 29, 1951 in Freising.

Two years later, he obtained a doctorate in theology with a thesis entitled "The People and House of God in St. Augustine's Doctrine of the Church". For almost twenty years, he taught philosophy and theology at schools and universities in Freising, Bonn, Munster, Tubingen, and Regensburg. In 1962, at the age of 35, he became a consultor of Cardinal Joseph Frings, the Archbishop of Cologne, at the Second Vatican Council. He has written many articles and books, including the Introduction to Christianity published in 1968 and launched a Catholic theological quarterly journal called Communio in 1972.

In 1977, he was appointed Archbishop of Munich and Frising by Pope Paul VI and took as his motto, "Fellow Worker in the Truth" He was elevated to cardinal-priest by Paul VI in June of the same year. On April 19, 2005, he was elected the 265th pope in the apostolic succession dating from the time of St. Peter.

Visit the Vatican Online. This megasite is truly awesome. Visit the Vatican Museums, check out archive materials from the archived libraries, or get caught up on news affecting those of the Catholic faith from around the world. Interested in Saints? Check out the Pontificate of Pope John Paul II. Search by name or date and the Saint for the date will be found along with any pictures and biography info.

My favorite way to spend time though is the interactive museum (Must have Java enabled software and high speed connection)