The Arms of Benedict XVI

EWTN has an article from CNA about Pope Benedict XVI's coat of arms. Apparently, he has kept the coat of arms he had as Archbishop of Munich and replaced the papal tiara with a bishop's miter (while retaining the Petrine keys, of course) and added the pallium.

In an article last week for Inside the Vatican, Father John Jay Hughes passed on eight-year-old reflections of then-Cardinal Ratzinger on his coat of arms. "'The shell reminds me of my great master Augustine, of my theological work, and of the vastness of the mystery which surpasses all our learning.'" (Father Hughes explains the Augustine connection thusly: "Walking along the seashore as he reflected on the mystery of the Trinity, Augustine came on a child who had dug a hole in the sand and was trying to pour the sea into it with a shell. Augustine realized that his efforts to understand the mystery of God were as futile as the child’s attempt to get the sea into the hole.")

I remember that the seashell figured prominently in the design of his chasuble at his inaugural Mass.

The crowned Moor and the bear carrying a pack are traditional symbols associated with the Archbishop of Munich.

(Hat tip: Ut Unum Sint)