Joseph Ratzinger has died at the age of 95. The Pope Emeritus passed away today at 9:34 am in the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican.
The conditions of the 265th successor of Peter had already worsened in the days before Christmas , when he began to complain in particular of "respiratory problems". Benedict XVI received his last visit on December 1 last year from the two winners of the Ratzinger Prize, the recognition that the foundation named after him bestows on theological scholars every year. A few photos remain from that day in which he showed himself weak, emaciated, tired, abandoned in the chair of the Mater Ecclesiae . Then no more news until it was Francis himself who spoke to the faithful at the general audience of a "very ill" Pope Emeritus.
For Benedetto, on Christmas Eve, a simple mass officiated at home. The situation seemed quite serious but stable, so much so that the personal secretary Monsignor Georg Gaenswein, who had temporarily left for a four-day trip, had had to return in a hurry. Recently, it was the writer and mathematician Giorgio Odifreddi who revealed that Ratzinger had been deaf for some time : he was no longer able to articulate sounds due to a serious impairment of his vocal cords. Last Wednesday he had received the anointing of the sick.
On Monday 2 January the body will be in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican for the greeting of the faithful. The funeral will be celebrated on Thursday 5 January , at 9.30 am, in St. Peter's Square and will be presided over by Pope Francis. «According to the wish of the Pope Emeritus, his funeral will take place in the name of simplicity. They will be solemn but sober ,” the director of the Vatican press office, Matteo Bruni, told reporters.
« Remain firm in the faith ! Don't get confused! Jesus Christ is truly the way , the truth and the life, and the Church, with all its insufficiencies, is truly His body": it is one of the spiritual bequests that the Pope Emeritus entrusted to the faithful in his will .
Addio a Papa Ratzinger
THE LIFE – Born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger in Marktl, Bavaria, on April 16, 1927, he was the seventh German pontiff in the history of the Catholic Church ( THE LIFE ) .
Ordained a deacon in 1950, a priest in 1951, appointed bishop in 1977 by Pope Paul VI, then archbishop and cardinal in the same year, he studied theology all his life and taught it for many years.
He was elected Pope on April 19, 2005 during the second day of the conclave , on the fourth ballot: «Dear brothers and sisters - his first speech as Pontiff - after the great Pope John Paul II, the cardinals have elected me, a simple and humble worker in the Lord's vineyard. I am consoled by the fact that the Lord knows how to work and act even with insufficient tools and above all I entrust myself to your prayers. In the joy of the risen Lord, trusting in his permanent help, we move forward. The Lord will help us and Mary his Most Holy Mother will be on our side. Thank you."
THE RESIGNATION – Seven years and 315 days later he uttered completely different words: «Dear Brothers, I have summoned you to this Consistory to communicate to you a decision of great importance for the life of the Church». It was February 11, 2013 and the Pope, for the first time in modern history, announced his resignation, news that shocked the world and became breaking news on all continents . First the Reuters agency, then CNN and then al Arabiya, France Presse, the British Telegraph and BBC and Sky News relaunched it even before confirmation from the Vatican arrived.
«After having repeatedly examined my conscience before God - Ratzinger continued - I have come to the certainty that my strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suitable for exercising the Petrine ministry in an adequate way . I am well aware that this ministry, due to its spiritual essence, must be carried out not only with deeds and words, but no less with prayer and suffering. However, in today's world, subject to rapid changes and agitated by questions of great importance for the life of faith, to steer the boat of Saint Peter and proclaim the Gospel, vigor of both body and soul is also necessary, vigor which, in recent months, has diminished in me to such an extent that I have to recognize my inability to properly administer the ministry entrusted to me".
Per Benedetto fu forte il richiamo della Madonna di Bonaria
THE RETREAT – Since he began planning his "retirement from the scene", he has never had any doubts: the ideal place to live as Pope Emeritus and end his life was the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery, at the top of the Vatican Gardens . Built by John Paul II in the early 1990s to house groups of contemplative nuns who alternated over the years, she took possession of it immediately, just long enough to renovate the monastery to adapt it to an elderly man who was already beginning to suffer from some walking problems and that he would soon need a walker to maintain stability and also compensate for the progressive blindness in one eye. The quiet of the Mater ecclesiae, surrounded only by greenery and his beloved classical music, immediately proved to be the ideal condition for fulfilling that mission of praying monk that Benedict XVI wanted to interpret as Pope Emeritus .
As long as Ratzinger's conditions allowed it, and above all before the deadly Covid pandemic, the monastery also saw a certain coming and going of friends, cardinals, bishops, intellectuals, scholars and even journalists for years who went to the Pope Emeritus in visit to discuss faith, to bring your own book or writing, to share a prayer, many even a photo or a selfie. In recent days, however, one of the friars of the Vatican health service who had been assisting Benedict XVI for many years had been seen day and night at the monastery.
THE REACTIONS – «Benedict XVI was a giant of faith and reason – commented Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni -. A man in love with the Lord who put his life at the service of the universal Church and spoke, and will continue to speak, to the hearts and minds of men with the spiritual, cultural and intellectual depth of his Magisterium. A Christian, a pastor, a theologian: a great figure in history that history will never forget. I expressed to the Holy Father Francis - he adds - the government's and my personal participation in his pain and that of the entire ecclesial community".
«The death of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI is a mourning for Italy – the words of the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella -. His gentleness and wisdom have benefited our community and the entire international community . With dedication he continued to serve the cause of his Church in the unprecedented role of Pope Emeritus with humility and serenity. His figure remains unforgettable for the Italian people. Intellectual and theologian, he finely interpreted the reasons for dialogue, for peace, for the dignity of the person, as the supreme interests of religions. With gratitude we look to his testimony and his example".
(Unioneonline/D)