Based on countless hours of interviews in Rome with Pope Benedict XVI himself, this first volume of an authoritative biography follows the early life of the future Pope, from his days growing up in Germany and his conscription into the Hitler Youth during World War II to his career as an academic theologian and eventual Archbishop of Munich.

"Emeritus Pope Benedict commands both adulation and unremitting criticism. To millions, he remains a beacon of light in a turbulent modern world. In this second volume of Peter Seewald's authoritative biography, the story runs from the Second Vatican Council (1965-8) right up to the present day. We see how Benedict was influenced by the Council and the ensuing political unrest all over Europe to move from a liberal perspective on the Church and the modern world to one that was profoundly conservative. Appointed in 1981 as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, and quickly nicknamed 'God's Rottweiler', he proved to be intransigent on the controversial issues of abortion, contraception, gay rights and gay marriage. But elected Pope in 2005, his tenure of office was so riven with shocking revelations of controversy and scandal that it seemed that by the time of his resignation in 2013, he was incapable of handling the complexities of the Church in the modern world. The ensuing scandals of 'Vatileaks', sexual abuse by priests and the Regensburg speech, which became the fuse to an eruption of anger and rage in the Muslim world, all made international headlines. Peter Seewald is the only person who is close enough to Benedict to assess the man himself and to uncover the truth about so many of the controversial issues surrounding this most controversial papacy. His magisterial biography of Benedict XVI is based not just on meticulous research but on many hours or recorded interviews with the Pope Emeritus himself."--