CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — A picture of Pope Benedict XVI, shrouded in purple, stood on the altar at Holy Name Cathedral as Chicago’s Archbishop Cardinal Blase Cupich spoke of the late Joseph Ratzinger’s lifelong interest in scholarship.
The cardinal said we should be grateful to have lived to see Benedict’s time leading the Catholic Church.
“When one who is called to be the greatest among us took seriously the gospel call to humble himself, by being the servant of all — even if that meant resigning his office,” Cupich said.
Cupich credited Benedict’s upbringing in Germany for giving him a sense of humility and connection to others.
“It was this humility, acquired in being docile to learning within a community, that gave him the confidence to respond to the great call that he received,” Cupich said. “He learned at home that he was not alone.”
The cardinal pointed to Benedict’s Christmas Day encyclical in 2005 called “God is Love” as a demonstration of how he felt close to the Lord.
“He humbled himself to enter into a trusting relationship to relate to Jesus, not as a lofty idea or an ethical choice, but as a person,” Cupich said.
Related
Related
Listen to WBBM Newsradio now on Audacy!