Former Pope Benedict XVI has died almost a decade after he stepped down because of his ailing health.
Benedict the first Pope to resign since Gregory XII in 1415 after only being pontiff for just 8 years
Benedict spent his final years at the Mater Ecclesiae monastery within the walls of the Vatican. His successor Pope Francis will lead the funeral on January 5.
The Vatican said the body of the Pope Emeritus will be placed in St Peter’s Basilica from January 2 for
the greeting of the faithful.”
Joe Biden – only the second Catholic to serve as US president, JFK was first – said Pope Benedict. Biden singled out the pope’s remarks during a 2008 visit to the White House in which the former pontiff said
will be remembered as a renowned theologian, with a lifetime of devotion to the Church, guided by his principles and faith.
the need for global solidarity is as urgent as ever, if all people are to live in a way worthy of their dignity.”
Although the former pontiff had been ill for some time, Vatican authorities said there had been an aggravation in his condition because of advancing age.
Born Joseph Ratzinger in Germany, Benedict was 78 when in 2005 he became one of the oldest popes ever elected.
For much of his papacy, the Catholic Church faced allegations, legal claims and official reports into decades of child abuse by priests.
Earlier this year the former pope acknowledged that errors had been made in the handling of abuse cases while he was archbishop of Munich between 1977 and 1982.
Pope Benedict was 95.
“With sorrow I inform you that the Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI, passed away today at 9:34 in the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican.
— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) December 31, 2022
Further information will be provided as soon as possible.” pic.twitter.com/O5dxoPaVkT
(via CNN)
