One year on from his shock resignation, Pope Emeritis Benedict has no regrets.
Archbishop Georg Ganswein, who as well as being head of Pope Francis’ household also works for the former pope told Reuters that as well as having no regrets he holds no resentment against his critics.
“It’s clear that humanly speaking, many times, it is painful to see that what is written about someone does not correspond concretely to what was done. But the measure of one’s work, of one’s way of doing things, is not what the mass media write but what is just before God and before conscience,” Ganswein said.
Some thought that Benedict’s decision to stay in the Vatican might have had a destabilising effect on the Church, however these fears never materialised.
“From the very start there was good contact between them and this good beginning developed and matured. They write to each other, they telephone each other, they talk to each other, they extend invitations to each other,” said Ganswein.
He said Benedict spends his time studying, reading, handling correspondence, receiving visitors, playing the piano and praying while taking walks in the Vatican gardens.
“He is well but certainly he is a person who carries the weight of his years. So, he is a man who is physically old but his spirit is very vivacious and very clear,” Ganswein said.
“Pope Benedict is at peace with himself and I think he is even at peace with the Lord”, said the man who has been at his side since before his election in 2005.
Benedict announced his decision to resign, the first pope to do so in 600 years, on February 11, 2013, citing the physical and psychological strains of the papacy. He stepped down on February 28.
Sources
- Reuters
- Image: Cafe St Isadore
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