Shock
decision: Pope Benedict XVI announces his resignation
during a meeting of
Vatican cardinals
On
February 11, 2013, Benedict XVI made history with his resignation from his
Petrine ministry. Cardinal James Stafford shared his personal experience of
that “shocking” moment.
Read
the full text of the news report from Catholic News Agency/EWTN:
VATICAN,
Feb. 10, 2014 (CNA/EWTN
News).- One year later, Cardinal James Stafford reflects on the meeting
where Benedict XVI announced that he was stepping down as Bishop of Rome, noting
that it was an “unexpected” moment of “shock” for all.
“Total
surprise, total shock,” was the experience of all those present when they heard
the Pope’s words that day, Cardinal Stafford explained in a Feb. 7 interview
with CNA.
On
the occasion of the one-year anniversary of the Feb. 11, 2013 announcement of
Benedict XVI’s resignation, Cardinal Stafford, President Emeritus of the
Pontifical Council of the Laity and Archbishop Emeritus of Denver, CO, spoke of
his experience at being in the room when the pontiff revealed his decision.
Calling
to mind the meeting where the announcement was made, the cardinal revealed that
“it took place at a consistory of the cardinals,” which was “basically” a
gathering of “the cardinals of Rome.”
The
consistory meetings, he explained, were held regularly in order to discuss “the
presentation of those who were being beatified and canonized within the
Catholic Church.”
“So
we were gathered in the room of the ‘consistorio,’
where we usually gathered with the Holy Father,” the cardinal observed, noting
that they “were gathered around him in prayer” for the daily recitation of the
Liturgy of the Hours.
The
Liturgy of the Hours is the official set of daily prayers prescribed by the
Catholic Church to be recited by clergy, religious institutes, and the laity,
and consist mainly of psalms, which are supplemented by hymns and readings.
The
cardinal also observed that there was “a presentation by the prefect of the
Congregation for the Causes of Saints, of those that were to be presented and
voted upon that day, for beatification and canonization.”
All
of this “took place without any eyebrow raising,” he expressed, however “at the
end of the prayer, “we were asked to sit down,” which “was something unusual.”
“We
all sat down, including the Holy Father, Pope Benedict, and a rather extensive
paper was brought up to him by his secretary to read.”
Originally,
“I didn’t put any meaning upon all of that,” the cardinal reflected, stating
that “I just thought we would be having an adjunct, that was somewhat unusual,
but not very unusual,” but “within ten seconds” he knew something was happening
because the Pope was “speaking in Latin, not in Italian.”
“I
was alerted to the fact that it was about something very special by the fact
that he was speaking to us not in the usual language of Italian, but in Latin,”
Cardinal Stafford recalled, noting that the pontiff had not spoken to them in
Latin “in this setting” since “his election,” so he thought “’I better listen
in on this.’”
“So
I listened very attentively, and very soon the words came out that he was
resigning,” the cardinal observed, “and he continued about the reasons, but
that came out within the first thirty seconds of his address.”
Then
they “concluded the celebration of the Liturgy of Hours,” he explained, and
Benedict XVI “left immediately, and we were left there stunned.”
“A
cardinal who was sitting next to me said, ‘Did he resign?’ I said, ‘yes, that’s
what he did. He resigned.’ And we just all stood at our places.”
Eventually
“we came together in smaller groups, and began sharing some of our reaction to
it,” the cardinal said, adding that “It was totally unexpected, and totally,
historically, unexpected.”
When
asked what he thought the legacy of this act and this time in the Church would
be, Cardinal Stafford responded that “I think it’s too soon” to know.
Benedict
XVI’s retirement officially went into effect on Feb. 28, 2013, and was a
conclusion he came to “after having repeatedly examined my conscience before
God,” he stated in his Feb. 11 address to the cardinals.
Speaking
of the reasons influencing his decision, the retired pontiff cited his age as
the primary factor, explaining that “I have come to the certainty that my
strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise
of the Petrine ministry.”
Only
two other Pope’s have resigned from their post in the history of the Church,
the first being St. Celestine V in 1294, and the last was Gregory VII, in 1415.
The
retired pontiff is now living in the Vatican’s monastery “Mater Ecclesiae,”
which lies just west of St. Peter’s Basilica, and which contains a chapel, a
choir room, a library, a semi-basement, a terrace and a visiting room that was
added in 1993. (Elise Harris)
