Interests
Pope Benedict is known to be deeply interested in classical music, and is an accomplished pianist. He has a grand piano in his papal quarters. The Pontiff's favorite composer is Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, of whose music the Pope said: "His music is by no means just entertainment; it contains the whole tragedy of human existence." Benedict also stated that Mozart's music affected him greatly as a young man and "deeply penetrated his soul." Benedict's favorite works of music are Mozart's Clarinet Concerto and Clarinet Quintet.
Pope Benedict has recorded an album of contemporary classical music in which Benedict sings and recites prayers to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The album was set for release on 30 November 2009.
Pope Benedict is also known to be fond of cats. As Cardinal Ratzinger he was known (according to former neighbours) to look after stray cats in his neighbourhood. A book called Joseph and Chico: A Cat Recounts the Life of Pope Benedict XVI was published in 2007 which told the story of the Pope's life from the feline Chico's perspective. This story was inspired by an orange tabby Pentling cat, which belonged to the family next door. During his trip to Australia for World Youth Day in 2008 the media reported that festival organizers lent the Pope a grey cat called Bella in order to keep him company during his stay.
Read more about this topic: Pope Benedict XVI
Famous quotes containing the word interests:
“two strangers uniting in the interests of torment”
—Samuel Beckett (1906–1989)
“Of all the anti-social vested interests the worst is the vested interest in ill-health.”
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
“Unfortunately, many things have been omitted which should have been recorded in our journal; for though we made it a rule to set down all our experiences therein, yet such a resolution is very hard to keep, for the important experience rarely allows us to remember such obligations, and so indifferent things get recorded, while that is frequently neglected. It is not easy to write in a journal what interests us at any time, because to write it is not what interests us.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)