Homage to the Holy Father

This morning, on the last day of his Pontificate, the Holy Father, Benedict XVI met with the Cardinals present in Rome to express his gratitude for their assistance during his years of service as Supreme Pontiff.

Before His Holiness addressed the Cardinals, he was greeted by His Eminence, Angelo Cardinal Sodano, Dean of the College of Cardinals.  His Eminence spoke the following words on behalf of all his brother Cardinals:

Address to the Holy Father
presented by Cardinal Angelo Sodano
Dean of the College of Cardinals

Holy Father,

With great trepidation, the Cardinal Fathers present in Rome gather around you today, to demonstrate to you once more their profound affection and to express their profound gratitude for your testimony of selfless apostolic service, for the good of the Church of Christ and of all humanity.

Last Saturday, at the conclusion of the Spiritual Exercises in the Vatican, Your Holiness wished to thank Your Collaborators in the Roman Curia, using these appropriate words: My friends, I wish to thank you all not only for this past week, but for these eight years, during which you have carried with me, with extreme competence, affection, love and faith, the weight of the Petrine ministry.

Beloved and venerable Successor of Peter, it is we who must thank you for the example which you have given during these eight years of Pontificate.  On the 19^th of April 2005 You inserted yourself in the long line of Successors of the Apostle Peter and today, February 28, 2013, you are preparing to leave it, anticipating that the rudder of the Barque of Peter will pass into other hands.  In this way, the apostolic succession which the Lord promised to his Church will continue until the time when the voice of the Angel of the Apocalypse proclaims: Tempus non erit amplius … consummabitur mysterium Dei  (Rev 10:6-7);  There will be no more delay! … the mystery of God will be accomplished.  In this way, the history of the Church will come to an end, together with the history of the world, with the arrival of new heavens and a new earth.

Holy Father, with profound love we have wished to accompany you during your journey, reliving the experience of the disciples on the road to Emmaus, who after having walked with Jesus for a certain length of time, said to one another: Did not our hearts burn within us as he spoke to us on the road? (Lk 24:32).

Yes Holy Father, this wisdom also burned in our hearts as we walked along this road with You during these last eight years.  Today, we wish to once more express to you our heartfelt gratitude.

With all our hearts, we repeat today a well-known expression from your beloved homeland: Vergelt’s Gott!  May God reward you!