Prominent people across the globe have continued to pour in tributes following the death of Pope Benedict XVI.
Daily Report Nigeria reported that Pope Emeritus XVI died on Saturday at the age of 95.
His demise was announced by the Vatican, stating that Pope Benedict had been very sick prior to his death.
The former Pope had retired almost a decade ago over an ailing health.
Here are six things you should know about the late Pope Benedict XVI.
-
Born Joseph Ratzinger, Benedict XVI was the 265th pope and became the first to resign in over 600 years. The pontiff has attributed his resignation to a lack of strength in the mind and body.
-
He was elected pope at the age of 78 and he is the fifth oldest person to have been elected pope.
-
After being ordained as a Catholic priest in 1951, Ratzinger became an academic theologian.
-
As a German soldier, he was interned in a prisoner of war camp, but released a few months later at the end of the war in May 1945.
-
Benedict is an accomplished pianist and his favourite works of music are Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto and Clarinet Quintet.
-
Ratzinger is the author of 66 books. His first book was published in 1966 and his most recent in 2012.
