ICYMI: Pope Francis hailed the “beloved” Benedict XVI in New Year’s Day services on Sunday as the Vatican released the first pictures of the former pontiff following his death at the age of 95.
Benedict, a conservative intellectual who in 2013 became the first pontiff in six centuries to resign, died on Saturday after years of declining health.
“Today we entrust the beloved pope emeritus Benedict XVI to the most holy mother , to accompany him in his passage from this world to God,” he said at a mass for peace at St Peter’s Basilica. A brilliant theologian, he alienated many Catholics with his staunch defense of traditional values and as pope struggled to impose his authority on the church as it battled a string of crises, including over clerical sex abuse.
His death brought to an end an unprecedented situation in which two “men in white” — Benedict and Francis — had co-existed within the walls of the tiny city-state. In July, suffering knee problems that have forced him to rely on a wheelchair, he admitted he needed to slow down or think about stepping aside.
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