(Vatican Radio) - In an effort to mark the day the Church remembers Benedict of Nursia
on July 11th, Veronica Scarisbrick shines the spotlight on the figure of this Saint.
One from whom Benedict XVI as drawn inspiration throughout his priestly life
as he himself mentioned at the beginning of his pontificate : "...I wish to reiterate
the steadfast resolve of the Holy See to continue serving the cause of peace.The very
name Benedict which I chose on the day of my assignment to the Chair of Peter is a
sign of my personal commitment to peace. In taking this name I wanted to evoke the
Patron Saint of Europe who inspired civilisation of peace on the whole continent and
Pope Benedict XV who condemned the First World War as a useless slaughter and worked
for a universal acknowledgement of the lofty demands of peace..." To find out
more Veronica Scarisbrick interviews the Abbot Primate of the Benedictine Confederation,
Notker Wolf. A fellow Bavarian who shares with her his reaction upon learning of
the Holy Father's choice to take the name Benedict. In the course of the interview
the Abbott also explains how the young Joseph Ratzinger once contemplated becoming
a Benedictine: "...he knows the Benedictines quite well from Bavaria. In Bavaria
we have seventeen Benedictine monasteries...the whole of the Bavarian mentality throughout
the centuries has been marked by the Benedictine charism...and Pope Benedict XVI as
a young man was thinking of joining a Benedictine monastery ...he loves the Rule of
St Benedict .... he's surely continuing along the lines of Pope John Paul II, the
fight for a Europe of values. It was on the 24th of October in 1964 that Paul VI had
proclaimed at Montecassino Benedict Patron Saint of Europe ..." Listen :