My Brother, The Pope by Georg Ratzinger

 

I waited a long time for this book to be available in this country.  In 2022, late last year Ignatius Press did so and released it.  I had long been  on a waiting list and was happy to receive it sometime earlier this year.  I read it awhile back and have just not posted here .  It is about  the family life of two brothers growing up, in a Catholic family in Germany,  Joseph and Georg, both become priests.  .Joseph  would become Pope Benedict XVI in Aoril 2005.  Georg would become  Director of  the Regensburger Domspatzen for 30 years, the world famous boys chorus of Regensburg.  I was fortunate to visit Regensburg back in 2015 on my European trip with a late friend,.   Georg  has shared wonderful tales of their life and their family who remained very close all their lives and Michael Haseman wrote these down, translated by Michael Miller.   This book was originally printed in Germany  in 2011. This edition has 253 pages with photos,  plus the acknowledgements, index and bibliography.  Pope Benedict passed n December 31, 2022.,  He had resigned as Pope to Pope Emeritus status.  

There is a writing by Pope Benedict in 2008 about his brother,  Georg, used as an introduction at the beginning of the book. 

The family and especially the two brother remained close all through their lives.  Their sister Maria would become a caretaker, housekeep of sorts for Joseph and later for Georg.  They shared lifelong devotion to their parents.  

Page 75 reflects something I believe naturally  true and  hat is barely or not  acknowledged in today's progressive culture:  "Boys just have different temperaments."

Page 76, "As brothers, Joseph and I were one heart and one soul.  Naturally we also quarreled and fought, that is part of it, but by and large we were inseparable, and that remained so our whole life long."

Page 216:  Whenever there is order somewhere then there are always those who disturb that order, do not understand it, or else deliberately refuse to accept it.  I only gradually became ware of the fact that order in the sense of clarity and truth must then be created over and over again.

  This book is a keeper and will remain on my shelf.  It was a very delightful and at times iconic read.  4 ****