Born in 1927 in Germany, Joseph Ratzinger, was the head of the Roman Catholic Church from April 2005 to February 2013. A prolific author, theologian, and university professor, Ratzinger served as an expert at the Second Vatican Council, and was tapped in 1977 by Pope Paul VI to lead the German Archdiocese of Munich and Freising. In 1981, Pope John Paul II called him to Rome to head the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, where he served until his papal election.