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Ex-pope Benedict's struggle with celibacy

September 8, 2016

Joseph Ratzinger was "an attractive man" who and struggled with the decision to become celibate, says Peter Seewald. Seewald's compilation of interviews with the former pontiff is due to be released later this week.

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Papst Benedikts letzter großer Auftritt
Image: GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images

"He was in love as a student, and it was very serious," Seewald told German weekly "Die Zeit" in a conversation about his upcoming book, "Final conversations."

"It was a serious problem for him. In the years after the war, there were female students for the first time. He was a very smart guy, a good-looking young man, an aesthete, who wrote poetry and read Hermann Hesse ... He had an impact on women and was impacted by them," Seewald said, adding that the former pontiff's vow of celibacy had been a tough decision for him.

Italien Castel Gandolfo Peter Seewald im Gespräch mit Papst Benedikt XVI
Journalist Peter Seewald has been regularly writing about the pontiffImage: picture-alliance/AP/Osservatore Romano

Seewald also detailed different aspects of Benedict's life after he #link:16592168:renounced papacy# three years ago. The pontiff lived a reclusive life in the Vatican Gardens where he was assisted by several nuns in his daily activities, the author told "Die Zeit." During his interviews, Ratzinger barely drank any water or coffee nor did he offer any to his guest.

"I had the impression that he lived in prayer and for prayer," Seewald said, adding that the former pope was very interested in the news. "The Italian news was an imperative for him. His brother once thought that Joseph Ratzinger was a news addict." The pontiff was also a big fan of "Don Camillo and Peppone," a series of films about an Italian Catholic priest and a communist town mayor.

A historical document

Ratzinger felt mentally and physically drained from his duties as the head of the Catholic Church, Seewald said. "I could go because I was under no pressure," Seewald quoted the pope as saying, adding that the pontiff did not quit for political reasons - despite the #link:15984207:scandals that occurred during his term.#

#video#

The 89-year-old Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger had not expected to live very long after his resignation, but he has a certain kind of resilience always kept him going, Seewald said.

"Ratzinger has an ability to bounce back," the author said. "One day you think, this was the last visit. The next time you realize he has gathered new strength."

Ratzinger is the first pope to retire in the last six centuries. Seewald's book,"Final Conversations," is due to be released on Friday.

mg/sms (AP, dpa)