He Gave Us So Much: A Tribute to Benedict XVI

“Benedict XVI was a spiritual master,” writes Robert Cardinal Sarah of his longtime mentor, after his death in 2022. “His very precise and profound theological thought is rooted in an authentic mystical and spiritual experience.” This book offers not an academic analysis of Ratzinger’s intellectual work, but a personal sketch of the “soul of Joseph Ratzinger”, a glimpse into “the secret recesses of his heart”. In He Gave Us So Much, Cardinal Sarah traces the spiritual contours of Ratzinger’s life and thought, revealing the image of a man on fire with love for God and neighbor. Benedict XVI was no professor in an ivory tower, but a shepherd and pastor, with the heart of a father. For him, prayer and meditation—communion with Christ—stand at the vibrant center of all Christian existence.