Professor Philip Booth

Professor Philip Booth

From Wave of Hope by Catholic Bishops' Conference

December 22, 2025 · 2 min · Season 1 · Episode 1

About this episode

Professor Philip Booth reflects on hope during Advent, inspired by Pope Benedict XVI's encyclical.

22 December This Wave of Hope reflection for Advent comes from Professor Philip Booth, Director of Policy and Research for the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales. Professor Booth finds hope in the words of Pope Benedict XVI, and specifically in his first encyclical letter: “On Christmas Day, 20 years ago, Pope Benedict XVI published an encyclical, Deus Caritas Est. In it, he gives us a message of true hope or trust that with the Lord’s help, we will have the strength to follow the path to which God has called us. And that is all He asks of us.” Wave of Hope offers 25 short multimedia reflections for the season – one a day – as our contributors share a moment in 2025 that has led them to a place of hope. Subscribe You can subscribe to our Wave of Hope podcast reflections using your podcast platform of choice. Subscribe using Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon/Audible. Feed: cbcew.org.uk/feed/podcast/wave-of-hope/

People in this episode

Guest: Professor Philip Booth

Topics covered

  • Advent
  • Hope
  • Christianity
  • Reflections
  • Pope Benedict XVI

Keywords

  • Advent
  • hope
  • Pope Benedict XVI
  • Deus Caritas Est
  • Catholic Bishops' Conference

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales

Books & works: Deus Caritas Est

More episodes of Wave of Hope

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Wave of Hope podcast page.