Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Pope Benedict makes first appearance since resignation news

Huge crowds in the Vatican cheered Pope Benedict XVI on Wednesday as he made his first public appearance since announcing his resignation at the end of the month.
 
He thanked the Roman Catholic faithful in several languages and said it was not appropriate for him to continue as pope.

"I've decided to resign the ministry given to me by the Lord. I've done this in full freedom, for the benefit of the church," he told those gathered in a Vatican City audience hall for his regular weekly appearance.


Benedict said he is fully aware of the gravity of his decision but he could not carry on as pope "if I don't have the strength that it requires."


He appeared tired but not visibly unwell as he sat and read his remarks off several sheets of paper.

Benedict will also celebrate an Ash Wednesday mass marking the beginning of Lent at St. Peter's Basilica in the afternoon.
 

The service has been moved from St. Sabina Church, where it is traditionally held, to the Basilica to accommodate the crowd of worshipers expected to attend, Vatican officials said.

The news Monday that Benedict was stepping down at the end of February "because of advanced age" shocked the world's 1.2 billion Roman Catholics.


He is the first pope to resign in nearly 600 years.

Benedict will keep working until February 28, meeting with pastors from Rome, Italian bishops, and the visiting presidents of Romania, Guatemala and other countries, according to the Vatican press office.

He will hold a final audience in Vatican City's St. Peter's Square on February 27, but the church is not planning a formal ceremony to mark the pope's departure, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, a spokesman for the Vatican, said Wednesday.


Benedict will simply leave at the end of his typical workday -- 8 p.m. in Vatican City, Lombardi said.

The pontiff, born Joseph Ratzinger, will first go to the pope's summer residence in Castel Gandolfo, and then is likely to retire to a monastery and devote himself to a life of reflection and prayer, Lombardi said.

He won't be involved in managing the church after his resignation.


"The pope is well and his soul is serene. He did not resign the pontificate because he is ill but because of the fragility that comes with old age," Lombardi said.

The pope's decision was not linked to a recent medical intervention to replace the battery in his pacemaker, Lombardi said, adding that it had been a routine procedure.

Benedict's unexpected move has inevitably prompted frenzied speculation over who might assume the papacy in his place.


Opinion: Huge challenges await next pope

The Vatican does not yet know when the cardinals will meet in a conclave to decide who will replace Benedict, but it must begin within 20 days of the pope's resignation, Lombardi said.


He had previously said a new pope would be in place before Easter is celebrated at the end of March.

While Benedict won't be directly involved in his successor's selection, his influence will undoubtedly be felt. He appointed 67 of the 117 cardinals that are set to make the decision.

The number of electors could drop to 115, as two cardinals will turn 80 in March, when their age makes them ineligible to cast a vote. More than two-thirds of the final number of cardinals must agree on the next pope. The announcement that a decision has been made will come in the form of a puff of white smoke emerging from a chimney in the Vatican.

Much speculation has focused on whether Benedict's successor might come from Africa or Latin America, rather than Europe, where Roman Catholic congregations are shrinking.


The pope's older brother, the Rev. Georg Ratzinger, speaking in Regensburg, Germany, said he expected to see a pope chosen from outside Europe one day -- but not just yet.

"I'm certain a pope will come from the new continents but whether it will be now, I have my doubts," he said. "In Europe, we have many very able people, and the Africans are still not so well known and maybe do not have the experience yet."


Opinion: Echoes of past in pope's resignation

Among those considered frontrunners for the role are Cardinal Angelo Scola, archbishop of Milan; Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet, who heads the Vatican's office of bishops; Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, an Argentinian; and Cardinal Peter Turkson of Ghana.

Whoever gets the nod, the selection of a new pontiff is expected to go smoothly.


"We're not going to have a problem of two competing popes. If Pope Benedict still wanted to have influence, he wouldn't have stepped down," said senior Vatican communications adviser Greg Burke.


While not quite unprecedented, Benedict's resignation is certainly historic. The last pope to step down before his death was Gregory XII, who in 1415 quit to end a civil war within the church in which more than one man claimed to be pope.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Like This Blog? ... Then please click to FOLLOW :)


A request was made that I make a video tutorial on how to make a Macramé Rosary. 1st effort by myself and my brother, the camera man :)
*** The tutorial shows and mentions #11 seed beads ... ERROR! LOL .. should be #6 seed beads! ***


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Follow Me on Pinterest
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Apostle, St. John tells us exactly how to recognize the spirit of truth from the spirit of falsehood. He says "as for them, they are of the world - and the world listens to them because they speak the language of the world. But we are children of God and those who know God: LISTEN TO US. Those who are not of God REFUSE TO LISTEN TO US. That is how we can tell the spirit of truth from the spirit of falsehood." ~1 John 4:6 [The "us" to whom St. John refers are the Apostles, and their successors the Bishops.]


Abortion Alternative - The Adoption Movement


"THE BORN SUPREMACY: OUR UNBORN IDENTITY"


LUISA PICCARRETA ~ DIVINE WILL
It WILL change your life!


Prayer to avoid the Sin of PRIDE:
“Oh My Jesus help me to avoid the sin of pride when I speak in Your Name. Forgive me if I ever belittle anyone in Your holy Name. Help me to listen Jesus when Your Voice is spoken and fill me with Your Holy Spirit so that I can discern the truth of Your Word when You call out to mankind. Amen.”


A prayer of St. Teresa of Avila:
O my God! Source of all mercy! I acknowledge Your sovereign power. While recalling the wasted years that are past, I believe that You, Lord, can in an instant turn this loss to gain. Miserable as I am, yet I firmly believe that You can do all things. Please restore to me the time lost, giving me Your grace, both now and in the future, that I may appear before You in "wedding garments." Amen.


“My children, let your speech be chosen with great care—it must be a light in the world. Know and believe that all you say has repercussions in time and eternity. Therefore, choose your words with wisdom and prudence, choosing to remain silent rather than fill the air with useless chatter or worse, gossip or virulent speech. Let your speech be a perfect mirror of your peaceful heart, a heart firmly grounded in the love of God and in complete trust in His goodness. Silence is often the more virtuous path. Bridle your tongue and you will be working for peace in the world.”

In the Name of Jesus I renounce as lies all thoughts that enter my mind from the evil one who accuses. By the authority of Jesus, I command them to leave me. I consecrate my mind to God for transformation into His Thoughts for my protection, salvation and His glory.


SWANSONS ONLINE -
THE BEST QUALITY, SERVICE AND PRICES FOR ALL YOUR VITAMIN, SUPPLEMENT AND HERBAL NEEDS!!!! Been with them over 20yrs and LOVIN' IT! :)

ZULILY ~ GREAT PRICES & GREAT STUFF!

Father Donald Calloway's New Book: ROSARY GEMS
Check it out!


Please Drop by and "LIKE" Battlebeads on FaceBook

Rosary beads, Chaplets and More by BattleBeads - Home of the USA Chaplet
Please Click here and "LIKE" us today!



Why you should pray the Chaplet

Stations

Full Rosary

Chaplet of the Holy Face

St. Gertrude Chaplet


Chaplet of Protection

MUSIC



Great Older Marian Playlist!
May Each Day

One Pair of Hands


Walking With the Lord
A Video Meditation


Lectio Divina

Please join to END ABORTIONS NOW!


FREE AUDIO BOOK:
The Story of a Soul by St. Therese
ANOTHER FREE AUDIO BOOK Father Solanus Casey

Little Latin Readers

Popular Posts

Universalis (weekly) Liturgy of the Hours

FEEDJIT Live Traffic Feed

My Blog List

Great Catholic Sites

Flag Counter

free counters
since 6/6/10

It must be said, that like the breaking of a great dam, the American decent into Marxism is happening with breath taking speed, against the back drop of a passive, hapless sheeple, excuse me dear reader, I meant people.
—Editorial, Pravda, April 27th, 2009; http://english.pravda.ru/

AddThis

Bookmark and Share

Just a Note:

Through the grace of God and many prayers, I survived a double surgery (with cancer) in the fall of 2008. Since then has becoming increasingly important to me to enhance my prayer life. I have taken on the task of praying for strangers and those with little hope and much adversity. To that end, I've also begun (July '09), to make rosaries and related items to put prayer into the hands of as many as I can that will PRAY for others.

The world is at the precipice ... we need to TAKE ACTION ... NOW. Time for fence sitting is quickly coming to an end. We all need to do what ever we can in the way of PRAYER & PENANCE to beg God's Grace upon humanity that we may shake away this sinfulness and pride to get back on the road that leads to heaven and our Glorious Triune God!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After you have made a decision that is pleasing to God, the devil may try to make you have second thoughts. Intensify your prayer time, meditation, and good deeds. For if satan's temptations merely cause you to increase your efforts to grow in holiness, he'll have an incentive to leave you alone.
~St. Ignatius of Loyola


BATTLEBEADS UPDATES, SALES & INFO!