Benedict XVI’s Ninetieth Birthday

Reading “Without Roots,” a book of dialogues between Pope Benedict XVI and Senator Marcello Pera over “the West, Relativism, Christianity and Islam,” proved to be a revelatory experience. Pope Benedict XVI’s entire oeuvre has the same effect.

The experience of reading (and re-reading his work) is best summed up in the words of St Luke: "And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose."

Tomorrow, on the 16th April 2017, Pope Benedict XVI celebrates his 90th birthday. He remains one of the most misunderstood figures of our times; much of this criticism often came from people who read the criticism of his work rather than the source itself.

On a personal level, I only have words of gratitude for the Pope Emeritus; for speaking to both the heart and the mind, for his humility and witness, and for being a model of both dialogue and conviction. One can only hope that the Pope-Emeritus is aware of the love and affection that the individuals who have been touched by his work have for him.