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- Feb 28, 2013
- Updated: 10:15pm
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Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI was born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger on April 16, 1927, in Marktl am Inn, Germany. He was the 265th Pope, having been elected in April 2005 following the death of Pope John Paul II. At 14, Ratzinger was conscripted into the Hitler Youth, a legal requirement. In 1945, he deserted the German army and was taken prisoner by the U.S. Army. Ratzinger received a doctorate in theology at the University of Munich in 1953, having been ordained as a priest two years earlier. He is a Conservative who during his papacy advocated a return to fundamental Christian values to counter the increased secularisation of many developed countries. On February 11, 2013, he became the first pontiff since the Middle Ages to resign.
Pope stuns world by announcing resignation
Citing a lack of mental and physical strength to carry out his duties, 85-year-old Benedict will become first pontiff to resign since Middle Ages
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Pope Benedict shocked the world yesterday by saying he no longer had the mental and physical strength to cope with the demands of his ministry, becoming the first pontiff to step down since the Middle Ages.
A new pope will probably be elected by the end of March, Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office, said. Benedict, 85, said he would step down on February 28 and would not take part in the conclave to elect a new pope,
The last pope to resign was Pope Gregory XII, who stepped down in 1415 in a deal to end the Great Western Schism among competing papal claimants.
Popes are allowed to resign and church law specifies only that the resignation be "freely made and properly manifested".
After resigning, the former pope will move to a summer residence near Rome.
Benedict said that in order to govern "both strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the last few months has deteriorated in me to the extent that I have had to recognise my incapacity to adequately fulfil the ministry entrusted to me". Dressed in red vestments, his voice barely audible as he read from a text, the pope made the announcement in a hall in his residence - the Apostolic Palace next to St Peter's Square.
Georg Ratzinger, the pope's brother, said he had known "for a few months" that Benedict would resign. "The reason for his resignation is indeed that he is feeling the burden of his age."
World political and religious leaders voiced regret but respect for Benedict's shock resignation.
In Hong Kong, Cardinal Joseph Zen Zi-kiun, who was anointed as cardinal by Benedict, said: "To be honest, I very much appreciate his decision [to resign]."
Bishop John Fang Xingyao , chairman of the officially sanctioned Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association, said he would pray for Benedict's health.
Anthony Liu Bainian , retired honorary chairman of the association, said he would also pray for the pope's health. He hoped for better Sino-Vatican ties, but said the Church on the mainland would be developed in accordance with "socialism with Chinese characteristics".
Reverend Dominic Chan Chi-ming, vicar general of the city diocese, said: "I was a little shocked. In the past, [most] popes worked until they rested in peace."
Reuters, Agence France-Presse, Stuart Lau and Teddy Ng
