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Pope Francis: Pray for a ‘very ill’ Benedict XVI

Pope Francis visits Benedict XVI on Aug. 27th, 2022 | Vatican Media

Vatican City, Dec 28, 2022 / 02:16 am (CNA).

Pope Francis on Wednesday asked for prayers for a “very ill” Benedict XVI.

Francis made the appeal for the 95-year-old pope emeritus at the end of his weekly public audience on Dec. 28 in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall.

“I ask to all of you a special prayer for the pope emeritus Benedict, who, in silence, is sustaining the Church,” he said.

“Remember him — he is very ill — asking the Lord to console him and to sustain him in this testimony of love for the Church until the end.”

Benedict XVI, who reigned as pope from 2005 until his resignation on Feb. 28, 2013, lives in a former monastery in the gardens of Vatican City.

On Dec. 1, Pope Francis praised Benedict XVI for his role as pope emeritus and his contributions to the field of theology.

Speaking at the 2022 Ratzinger Prize award ceremony at the Vatican, Pope Francis said: “We all feel his spiritual presence and his accompaniment in prayer for the whole Church.”

“But this occasion is important to reaffirm that the contribution of his theological work and, more generally, of his thought continues to be fruitful and effective,” he said.


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6 Comments

  1. Has truth ever been so spoken? “I ask to all of you a special prayer for the pope emeritus Benedict, who, in silence, is sustaining the Church,” he [Francis] said.

    • Not if you bear in mind that Francis harbored deep contempt for the actual theology of Benedict. A call to prayer if always good. I can not ignore self-evident hypocrisies.

  2. The truth is “Benedict…sustaining the Church.” Many of us have a little more hope because Benedict has remained alive, suffering, in silence. [Although we still do not easily understand or accept his resignation. Some at times fault him because of that.]

    My writing often lacks clarity and fails to explain what I really mean.

    Yes, hypocrisy is prime in the primacy, and I accept, espouse, and proclaim that without saying. I also hypothesis the hypocrisy will increase in blatancy, frequency, and with less hesitation following the death of the emeritus. May God prove me wrong. Already we are near hell’s gates.

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