Pope Benedict pledges 'obedience' to successor

On last day before stepping down, Benedict tells assembled cardinals in Vatican they should be unified in their future action

guardian.co.uk, Lizzy Davies in Castel Gandolfo, Thursday 28 February 2013

Pope Benedict XVI conducts the last meeting with the cardinals at the Vatican.
Photograph: Osservatore Romano/Reuters

Pope Benedict XVI has pledged his "unconditional reverence and obedience" to whoever succeeds him as head of the Roman Catholic church as he prepares to stand down.

In an apparent attempt to defuse growing concerns that his move - the first papal abdication in almost 600 years - would sow further division among the church, Benedict told assembled cardinals in the Vatican they should be unified in their future action.

"Before greeting you individually, I would like to tell you that I will continue to be close to you in prayer, especially in the coming days," he said, towards the end of a speech in the Clementine Hall of the Apostolic Palace. "Among you is the future pope, to whom I promise my unconditional reverence and obedience."

Benedict - whose resignation will come into effect at 8pm (7pm GMT) on Thursday - spoke of his desire to see the college of cardinals unified "like an orchestra" where harmony existed alongside diversity, which he said was "the expression of universal church".

His remarks came after one cardinal made several critical comments about Benedict and his decision to stand down. George Pell, an Australian cardinal and archbishop of Sydney, told the Seven Network on Wednesday that the move might set a worrying precedent. "People who, for example, might disagree with a future pope will mount a campaign to get him to resign," he said. He went on to describe the outgoing pontiff as a "brilliant teacher" but said that "government wasn't his strongest point." Pell said: "He's got to know his theology, but I think I prefer somebody who can lead the church and pull it together a bit."

The farewell meeting with the cardinals was Benedict's final high-profile engagement as pope in the Vatican. After saying goodbye to the pontifical household, he will leave the Apostolic Palace at 5pm and be flown in a helicopter to the papal residence at Castel Gandolfo, about 15 miles southeast of Rome.

Soon after, amid the greetings of local residents and pilgrims, he will make his final appearance as pope on the balcony of the apostolic palace. At 8pm, the Swiss guards whose job it is to guard the pope will go off duty from the gates of the palace. They are expected to be replaced by Vatican police.

On Wednesday, the pope told pilgrims in St Peter's Square that there had been moments in his papacy during which God "seemed to be sleeping". Before the cardinals, he reiterated that sentiment, telling them that, while there had been "beautiful moments of radiant light", there had also been times at which "some clouds darkened the sky".

Once in retirement, the cleric will still be addressed as "Your Holiness Benedict XVI" but his title will be either emeritus pope or emeritus Roman pontiff. He will trade his famous red shoes for some brown loafers given to him in Mexico last year, but will continue to wear a cassock in the traditional papal colour of white.

Castel Gandolfo, which has played host to numerous popes over the past four centuries, including Benedict, overlooks a lake and offers views of the surrounding countryside. As he waits for his permanent residence inside Vatican walls to be renovated, the 85-year-old Bavarian will be able to enjoy its manicured gardens and sumptuous interiors. The residence, which is under pontifical jurisdiction, has its own farm, with cows, hens, cockerels and bees.

Some locals have said that the pope's resignation has been hard for them to understand. "Let's say that we are in the process of reappraising the figure of the pope. We have faith in him even if he has placed a big question mark over the faith in the church. A very big question mark," said Veronica Radoi, 30, an employee in a local restaurant. "But I can see that he is tired. We hope he'll find peace here."

Gianpiero, a 70-year-old local who did not give his surname, said he was surprised when he heard the news, but he "accepted it, with no judgement". He added: "It's an important day for us because the locals of Castel Gandolfo are very tied to the pope and the papacy. For 400 years the popes have been coming here during summer. Today we feel very honoured that he is coming to spend this time with us."

Meanwhile in the Vatican cardinals from all over the world will begin informal consultations on how to move forward with the process of choosing a successor. There is no date for the conclave to begin, but it could be as early as next week. There will be no representative of the UK following Cardinal Keith O'Brien's forced resignation on Monday.

In his final audience as pope on Wednesday, Benedict was greeted by tens of thousands of pilgrims in St Peter's Square and banners that variously read "Thank you!" and "You will never be alone". Benedict's eight years as head of the Catholic church were marred by the unfolding clerical abuse scandal in Europe and the US and by the so-called Vatileaks affair.

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Pope to resign in historic move

Update from Ashtar via Mike Quinsey: Obama’s State of the Union Address – (Ashtar channeled by Susan Leland, February 12, 2013)

“… Let us propose that you need look no further for proof of all of this than the most recent resignations of humans, or we shall say those who appear to be human, from very high positions! We shall be lending our support to the election of a pope who is one with the people and in turn with all of the kingdoms. I have the pleasure of announcing that there shall be some who are not cardinals when that enclave meets.

Representing all of us, you and us, including those of us who come to be with you, shall be St. Germain and Archangel Michael, because if there was ever a group that needed to get the Truth out on the table, it’s the group of cardinals who shall decide who will be the new leader of millions of people who belong – and you can take that any way you choose – to the Catholic Church.

It’s time for a lot of fresh air to blow through those hallowed halls. It’s time for the secrets to not be secrets anymore and its time for those who are truly upon the spiritual path – and everybody is told to be on the spiritual path – it’s just that the leaders are not quite on the same path – it’s time for them to be freed from the dogmas, the restrictions and the enslavements that have been put upon them. So there is going to be a lot happening there!

We are going to support the election of a new pope as part of the breath of spring; the breath of spring is, by the way, also called the equinox. You have a date on your calendar of approximately the twenty-first of March – in some places of the world there is variance. And there are going to be a lot of breaths of spring coming, so stay tuned!!!  

We shall comment briefly upon another resignation, and that is of course of the queen. Her name is Beatrix, and she is a part of the ruling establishment in Europe, which is changing, as it must. And so Pope Ratzinger will become Cardinal Ratzinger and his published gameplan is that he shall retire back to that place from where he came, which is the heart of illuminati land, but the reality of it is he has another date, and the reality of it is, that this is all being taken care of.  ….”

Matthew message (Channelled by Suzanne Ward, Feb 18, 2013)

"... The Rothschild faction of the Illuminati, which governed its empire from London and the Vatican, lost its media foothold along with its other powers in that part of the world. A section of the Illuminati’s Rockefeller faction, headquartered in Washington, DC, and New York City, still has influence on major media in the US as well as on Wall Street; and their lingering foothold in Congress is evident in the intransigence that has stagnated progress. ..."

In this photo provided by the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore

Romano,  cardinals attend a meeting at the Vatican, Monday,

March 4, 2013. (AP Photo/L'Osservatore Romano, ho)