(Vatican Radio) Last Testament: in his own words is the final book-length interview of Pope-emeritus Benedict XVI. Conducted by veteran journalist Peter Seewald, the volume comes as close as anyone has a right to expect to an autobiography from the man who has remained “hidden from the world” in a renovated convent in the Vatican gardens since resigning the See of Peter in 2013.
Bloomsbury Publishing has brought out an English edition of the work, which was written in German, based on the conversations between the two native German-speakers.
Both accurate and engaging, the translation captures the depth, poetry and surprising playfulness of the Pope-emeritus.
Dr. Jacob Phillips of St. Mary’s University Twickenham, London, and the Benedict XVI Centre for the Study of Religion and Society at St. Mary’s, translated the work for Bloombury. Phillips spoke with Vatican Radio about the project.
“I do genuinely think this is a book for everyone,” he said.
“Certainly, I would imagine Benedict XVI wanted to explain the story of [his] resignation, when there’s all kinds of crazy interpretations of it flying around,” he said, “which seem to be completely inaccurate.” Phillips went on to say the story of the man is so powerful, and his telling of it so captivating, as to recommend it to anyone with an interest in the humanity of one of the great figures of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. “This book is for anybody who is interested in a drama of history and a human life,” he added.
Click below to hear the extended conversation between Chris Altieri (an external affiliate of the BXVI Centre at St. Mary’s) and Dr. Jacob Phillips, translator of Last Testament: in his own words
Phillips was speaking with Vatican Radio’s Chris Altieri (an external affiliate of the BXVI Centre at St. Mary’s) on the sidelines of a day-long international conference exploring and celebrating theological legacy of the Pope-emeritus on Tuesday, November 8th, ahead of the official launch of Last Testament in the evening of that same day at St. Mary’s.
The conference featured papers from renowned Anglican priest and 2013 Ratzinger Prize-winning theologian, Prof. Richard Burridge, as well as Drs. Phillips, Altieri, and Mary McCaughey of The Priory Institute Dominican Centre for Theological Studies, Dublin.
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