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Pope Francis' online flock doubles on Twitter

April 4, 2013 12:45
Pope Francis' online flock has doubled from 2.5 million to 5.0 million Twitter followers in just seven weeks -- nearly half the time it took his predecessor Benedict XVI to build up his following. The account @pontifex -- the word "pope" in Latin -- has tweets in nine languages including English, Spanish, Arabic and Latin. They are snippets of religious instruction rather than insights into the pontiff's daily life. The number on all nine accounts put together went over five million for the first time on Thursday.

Pope Benedict XVI bids farewell to cardinals, vows obedience to next pontiff

March 3, 2013 22:18
Vatican City, Feb 28 (EFE).- Pope Benedict XVI bid farewell to the College of Cardinals and vowed "unconditional obedience to the new pope" on Thursday, his last day as the leader of the world's more than 1 billion Catholics.

Pope holds last public audience at Vatican

February 27, 2013 10:17
Vatican City, Feb 27 (EFE).- Pope Benedict XVI held his last general audience at the Vatican on Wednesday, a day before he steps down from the papacy. About 200,000 people turned out to bid farewell to the pontiff, who assured the faithful that his heart was "filled with thanksgiving to God who ever watches over his Church and her growth in faith and love." The pope, who turns 86 in two months, announced on Feb. 11 that he planned to step down from the papacy on the last day of this month, becoming the first pope to resign in nearly 600 years.

Pope readies for final audience on resignation eve

February 26, 2013 22:02
Pope Benedict XVI will hold the last audience of his pontificate in St Peter's Square on Wednesday on the eve of his historic resignation as leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics. Tens of thousands of pilgrims are expected at the Vatican to bid a final farewell to an 85-year-old pope who abruptly cut short his pontificate by declaring he was too weak in body and mind to keep up with the modern world.

Pope Benedict gives last Sunday blessing

February 26, 2013 11:25
Vatican City, Feb 24 (EFE).- Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday took part in his last Angelus prayer, telling the approximately 200,000 of the faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square that he planned to focus even more on prayer and meditation after stepping down as leader of the Roman Catholic Church later this week.

Pope promises 'spiritual proximity' after resignation

February 23, 2013 07:46
Pope Benedict XVI on Saturday promised top Vatican officials he would remain in "spiritual proximity" with them even after he resigns next week, at the end of a week-long spiritual retreat in the Vatican. The pope also told members of the Roman Curia -- the government of the Church -- that the beauty of God's creation "is constantly contradicted by the evil of this world, by suffering and by corruption." "It is as if evil constantly wants to sully creation to contradict God and render his truth and his beauty unrecognisable," the pope said.

Next pope needs 'wisdom and energy': S. African cardinal

February 14, 2013 15:11
South African cardinal Wilfrid Fox Napier, seen as a possible successor to Pope Benedict XVI, said the Church was in a "profound crisis" and needed a new pope to implement "spiritual renewal". The 71-year-old also predicted next month's conclave of cardinals in the Sistine Chapel would last longer than the last one which took just two days, speaking in an interview with Italian daily La Stampa published on Thursday. "We can come out of this profound crisis with a strong spiritual renewal like the one of St Francis who implemented a moral reform," Napier said.

Pope's nationality not key factor: Brazil prelate

February 13, 2013 16:15
Nationality and age should not be key factors in choosing who will succeed Benedict XVI, a Brazilian cardinal considered in the running to be the future pope said here Wednesday. Much more important will be the candidate's capacity to lead the Roman Catholic Church "at a time of great challenges," Sao Paulo archbishop Odilo Scherer told a press conference. "In the last papal election, the (nationality) issue was on the agenda, the possibility still exists. Now we could also have a pope from either Latin America, Africa, Asia, or Europe," he noted.
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