On Monday, February 11 of this year, the Liturgical Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes, and the World Day of Prayer for the Sick, His Holiness, Benedict XVI surprised the world by revealing that at the end of this month, he will renounce the ministry of Bishop of Rome, Successor of Peter entrusted to (him) ... on 19 April 2005. His Holiness clarified on that day that this act will take effect as of 8:00pm local time in Rome on Thursday of this week.
After providing his reflection on the Transfiguration this past Sunday, February 24, his final Angelus appearance, His Holiness told the gathered crowd:
Dear brothers and sisters, I feel that this word of God is particulary suited to me at this particular time in my life. Thank you! The Lord is calling me to 'climb the mountain', to dedicate myself more intensely to prayer and meditation. But this doesn't mean that I am abandoning the Church; on the contrary, if God is asking this of me, it is precisely because I can continue to serve Him with the same dedication and love with which I have tried to do until now, but in a way more adapted to my age and my strength. Let us implore the intercession of the Virgin Mary, that she may help us to always follow the Lord in prayer and in acting charitably.
At the conclusion of the recitation of the Angelus, His Holiness addressed the following words in English:
I offer a warm greeting to all the English-speaking visitors present for this Angelus prayer, especially the Schola Cantorum of the London Oratory School. I thank everyone for the many expressions of gratitude, affection and closeness in prayer which I have received in these days. As we continue our Lenten journey towards Easter, may we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus the Redeemer, whose glory was revealed on the mount of the Transfiguration. Upon all of you I invoke God’s abundant blessings!
Tomorrow morning, Wednesday, February 27, the Holy Father will preside at the weekly audience in Saint Peter's Square. The format for the Audience will be the same as all other Audiences, with the exception that there will not be an opportunity for anyone to greet the Holy Father personally at the conclusion of the Audience. Instead, His Holiness will travel in the pope-mobile around St. Peter's Square before retiring to the Apostolic Palace.
His Holiness will meet with the Cardinals who are currently in Rome on Thursday, although he will not pronounce any official speech. Following the meeting with the Cardinals, he will travel to Castel Gandolfo where he will remain until the renovations at the monastery on the grounds of Vatican City where he will live, along with his personal secretary, Archbishop Georg Ganswein, who is also the Prefect of the Papal Household.
At present, there are 118 Cardinals elegible to enter the Conclave, although two of them have already indicated that they will be unable to attend, therefore there will be 116 present when the Conclave begins.
Dear brothers and sisters, I feel that this word of God is particulary suited to me at this particular time in my life. Thank you! The Lord is calling me to 'climb the mountain', to dedicate myself more intensely to prayer and meditation. But this doesn't mean that I am abandoning the Church; on the contrary, if God is asking this of me, it is precisely because I can continue to serve Him with the same dedication and love with which I have tried to do until now, but in a way more adapted to my age and my strength. Let us implore the intercession of the Virgin Mary, that she may help us to always follow the Lord in prayer and in acting charitably.
At the conclusion of the recitation of the Angelus, His Holiness addressed the following words in English:
I offer a warm greeting to all the English-speaking visitors present for this Angelus prayer, especially the Schola Cantorum of the London Oratory School. I thank everyone for the many expressions of gratitude, affection and closeness in prayer which I have received in these days. As we continue our Lenten journey towards Easter, may we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus the Redeemer, whose glory was revealed on the mount of the Transfiguration. Upon all of you I invoke God’s abundant blessings!
Tomorrow morning, Wednesday, February 27, the Holy Father will preside at the weekly audience in Saint Peter's Square. The format for the Audience will be the same as all other Audiences, with the exception that there will not be an opportunity for anyone to greet the Holy Father personally at the conclusion of the Audience. Instead, His Holiness will travel in the pope-mobile around St. Peter's Square before retiring to the Apostolic Palace.
His Holiness will meet with the Cardinals who are currently in Rome on Thursday, although he will not pronounce any official speech. Following the meeting with the Cardinals, he will travel to Castel Gandolfo where he will remain until the renovations at the monastery on the grounds of Vatican City where he will live, along with his personal secretary, Archbishop Georg Ganswein, who is also the Prefect of the Papal Household.
At present, there are 118 Cardinals elegible to enter the Conclave, although two of them have already indicated that they will be unable to attend, therefore there will be 116 present when the Conclave begins.
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