BREAKING NEWS: Pope Benedict to stand down as leader of the Catholic church
Worldwide, Headline, Daily news | ankakh | February 11, 2013 16:12
Pope Benedict XVI is to stand down as leader of the Catholic church, it was announced today.
The Pontiff said his strength was ‘no longer adequate to continue in office due to his advanced age’.
He said: ‘I have had to recognise my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me.’
He said he was making the decision in ‘full freedom’ but was ‘fully aware of the gravity of this gesture’.
A Vatican spokesman said he will retire on February 28.
Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger became Pope Benedict XVI when he took office in April 2005 after succeeding Pope John Paul II.
Further details of his resignation are not yet clear, but the decision is highly unusual as the vast majority of incumbents die in office.
A spokesman for the German government said that he was ‘moved’ by news of the Pope’s resignation.
Pope Gregory XII was the last pope to resign, standing down in 1415.
He quit during the Western Schism when three people claimed the papal throne.
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