Why did Pope Benedict resign?

Pope Benedict was the first pope in 600 years to resign from office, saying on Feb. 11, 2013, that the modern world was changing so quickly and profoundly that someone of his age and era was “no longer suited” to the papacy. He was 85 at the time. When he was elected on April 19, 2005, he was already the oldest pope in centuries.

Was there more to his resignation?

Benedict’s papacy was facing multiple significant crises at the time. Documents leaked by his former butler to the Italian media exposed internal chaos, allegations of corruption and wrongdoing at the highest levels of the Catholic Church. The Vatican bank faced mounting criticism over its opaque operations, leading foreign financial institutions to temporarily suspend credit transactions in the world’s smallest state. And above everything else: the ongoing revelations of rampant sexual abuse by Catholic priests and decades-long efforts by the church hierarchy to cover it up. Then-Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi in 2013 said that the pope made his decision to resign “aware of the great problems the church faces today,” adding that the decision showed “great courage and determination.” He insisted, however, that the pope’s decision was personal and that he had not resigned because of “difficulties in the papacy.” At his final Mass and homily as pope, on Feb. 13, 2013, Benedict assessed his church as being in a distorted place because of internal divisions. “We can reveal the face of the church and how this face is, at times, disfigured,” he said. “I am thinking in particular of the sins against the unity of the church, of the divisions in the body of the church.” He called for the Catholic Church to overcome “individualism” and “rivalry,” saying they were only for those “who have distanced themselves from the faith.”

Who became the next pope?

Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina was elected pope by a “papal conclave,” or cardinal meeting to elect a pope, on March 13, 2013. He chose the name Pope Francis.

Who were previous popes who resigned?

In the past 1,000 years, only four other popes resigned, Max Fisher reported for The Washington Post in 2013, when Benedict stepped down: Pope Benedict IX, in 1045: At age 33 and about 10 years into his tumultuous term, the Rome-born pope resigned so that he could get married — and to collect some cash from his godfather, also Roman, who paid Benedict IX to step down so that he might replace him, according to British historian Reginald L. Poole’s definitive and much-cited history of the 11th century. Pope Gregory VI, in 1046: The same man who had bribed and replaced his godson ended up leaving the office himself only a year later, according to Poole’s account. The trouble began when Benedict IX failed to secure the bride he’d resigned for, leading him to change his mind and return to the Vatican. Both popes remained in the city, both claiming to rule the Catholic church, for several months. That fall, the increasingly despondent clergy called on the German Emperor Henry III, of the Holy Roman Empire, to invade Rome and remove them both. When Henry III arrived, he treated Gregory VI as the rightful pope but urged him to stand before a council of fellow church leaders. The bishops urged Gregory VI to resign for bribing his way into office. Though the fresh new pope argued that he had done nothing wrong in buying the papacy, he stepped down. Pope Celestine V, in 1294: After only five months in office, the somber Sicilian pope formally decreed that popes had the right to resign, which he immediately did, according to a report in the Guardian . He wrote, referring to himself in the third person, that he had resigned out of “the desire for humility, for a purer life.” He became a hermit, but two years later was dragged out of solitude by his successor, who locked him up in an Italian castle. Celestine died 10 months later. Pope Gregory XII, in 1415: The last resignation occurred when Gregory stepped down to end the Western Schism in the Catholic Church, in which rival popes and antipopes, each recognized by a different set of secular governments in Europe, claimed sovereignty over the church.

Why are papal retirements so unusual?

The papal selection process is draped in ceremony, sacred history and the idea that the process is divinely guided — and lifelong, not something that can be “quit” like a job. The idea of having one pope at a time is also understood to be motivated by basic politics and fear that a resignation could cause a schism in the church. Benedict, who presented as a totally orthodox man, shocked the world with his unconventional decision. Some immediately praised the decision as an expression of humility; others said it made the office look a bit like a secular CEO. The surprise, and the orthodox instinct to cast things as being totally in keeping with the past, led many Vatican experts to spend the day arguing about what verb to use to describe his action, because “retiring” seemed technically impossible.

What was his retirement like?

When Benedict stepped down, the Vatican said he would move for some time to a papal residence in Castel Gandolfo, a 135-acre summer retreat south of Rome, and then return to live in a monastery inside the Vatican. It also announced the name he would use: His Holiness Benedict XVI, Roman Pontiff Emeritus, or Pope Emeritus. He continued to wear a white cassock.

Religion

When and why did Pope Benedict XVI resign?

By Michelle Boorstein

December 31, 2022 at 10:54 a.m. EST

Pope Benedict XVI in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on Feb. 9, 2013, four days before his final Mass. (Gregorio Borgia/AP)

6 min

In the past 10 years, the Catholic Church has been focused on Pope Francis, his rapid internationalizing of church leadership and shift of focus from matters of gender and sex to those of poverty, inequality and climate. But Pope Benedict XVI’s announcement in 2013 that he would essentially retire felt earth-shattering at the time.

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He was the first pope to do so in many centuries, rocking his image as the ultra-traditionalist and opening the door to the idea of the papacy as a complex human job.

Here’s what we know about his resignation.

The death of Pope Benedict XVI

The latest: Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI died Saturday at the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery within Vatican City. His death could reshape the Catholic Church. Here’s a look at his life in pictures.

Benedict’s legacy: Benedict was the first pope to resign in 600 years and his decision to step down transformed his legacy. These are some his most significant — and controversial — quotes.

The funeral: The funeral Mass for Pope Benedict will take place on Thursday, Jan. 5, but not all papal funeral traditions may apply to an ex-pope. Here’s what we know about the funeral so far.