It is reported that the last words of the dying Pope Emeritus Benedict were: “Lord, I love you”. Whether this is true or not, the short prayer is certainly in tune with the focus of his theological work as a theologian and bishop, cardinal and Pope – to elaborate on the primacy of the love of God revealed in Jesus Christ. His writings, sometimes described as a symphony, return repeatedly to the theme of the gift God has made in giving himself to us in Jesus Christ through the Spirit of truth, freedom and love. In this brief article, written shortly after his death, I want to highlight just a few points that struck me from the theological and magisterial writings of Ratzinger/Benedict. I do so gratefully calling to mind his gracious demeanour, clarity of thought and humour that I experienced during annual seminar days with him in the late ’90s and early 2000s.