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Former Pope Benedict XVI dies at 95

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Former Pope Benedict XVI died at the age of 95, over a decade after stepping down due to ill health. He led the Catholic Church for less than eight years before becoming the first Pope to retire since Gregory XII in 1415 in 2013.

Benedict spent his final years at the Mater Ecclesiae convent within the Vatican walls, where he died on Saturday at 09:34 (08:34 GMT). On January 5, his successor, Pope Francis, will officiate at the funeral. The body of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI will be put in St Peter’s Basilica on January 2 for “the greeting of the faithful,” according to the Vatican.

After the former Pope’s death was announced, bells rang out from Munich Cathedral, and a solitary bell rang out from St Peter’s Square in Rome.

The head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, claimed Pope Benedict was “one of the great thinkers of the 20th century”.

He stated in a statement: “I recall with fondness the extraordinary Papal Visit to these regions in 2010. We witnessed his kindness, tenderness, perceptiveness of mind, and openness to everyone he encountered.”

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak declared the former pope “a great theologian whose UK visit in 2010 was a historic event for both Catholics and non-Catholics throughout our country”.

People began arriving in St Peter’s Square in Rome after learning of the previous Pope’s death. Although the previous pontiff has been ailing for some time, Vatican officials stated his condition had worsened due to his advanced age.

Pope Francis asked his final audience of the year at the Vatican on Wednesday to “pray a special prayer for Pope Emeritus Benedict,” who he said was very unwell. Benedict, born Joseph Ratzinger in Germany, was 78 when he became one of the oldest popes ever elected in 2005.

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Pope Instagram activity comes under dark cloud

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The social media activities of Pope have come under dark cloud, as it has been found that a photo of a scantily clad Brazilian model was liked from the official account of the Pope.

The revelation has put the social media activities of the Pope under dark cloud.

The Vatican has not yet publicly commended about the development.

The Church city has launched a thorough investigation into this matter.

Actually, the activity came to the notice of media house when the photo was unliked by the official account of the Pope.   

The development has triggered a serious conversation around the subject. The matter has also emerged in several social media platforms.

There is a suspicion that the official account of the Pope was hacked.

It needs a detailed investigation to bring out the truth.

It is unfortunate that the Holy See has come under the cloud of this kind of allegation.

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Vatican prosecutes two priests in a case of alleged sexual abuse

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As many as two priests have been prosecuted by Vatican in a case of alleged sexual abuse, upholding its assurance that the city state will not take the issue of sexual abuse lightly.

This is the first time the city state has taken up a case like this.

One of the two who has been implicated in the crime is accused of sexually assaulting an alter boy. The other is charged with covering up the alleged assault.

Both the charges are very serious in nature.

Notably, the accused priests have not responded to the allegations levelled against them in the court.

At present, the Catholic community, which is the most respected community in the country, is in a crisis. It is only the leadership of the community which can save the community from this danger.

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Italian woman booked over Vatican’s complaint

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A thirty-nine-year-old Italian woman has been booked on the charges of embezzlement over the complaint filed by Vatican.

She was an employee of Cardinal Angelo Becciu, a senior Vatican official who was recently demoted over a similar charge.

The arrest has been made after an Interpol warrant was issued against her in connection with this matter.

 The woman has denied the charge levelled against her. She has admitted that she received a payment of €500,000 from Cardinal Becciu.

She has defended her stand, by saying that the payment was made to her to provide parallel diplomacy to help missionaries in conflict areas.

The Cardinal has also supported the argument raised by the woman.

Like the woman, the demoted church official has also denounced the allegation that was levelled against him.

The allegation has severely damaged the reputation of the Vatican administration. The administration needs to do an herculean task to erase the damage made by the latest development.   

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Unexpected resignation exposes flaws in Vatican administrative structure

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The unexpected resignation of a high-ranking Vatican official, Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu, has exposed the flaws in the Vatican administrative structure.

The resigned Cardinal alleged that he was told to file his resignation by Pope Francis

As per a report, the ousted Cardinal was earlier placed under suspension for misusing Church money.

The allegation against the Cardinal was that he illegally handed Church money to his brothers.

The ousted Cardinal has denounced all allegations levelled against him.

A little-known fact is that Cardinal Becciu was a close aide to the Pope.

Once the said Cardinal was an important officer in the Vatican’s Secretariat of State.

It was a corruption allegation linked to a controversial deal to invest in a luxury London building which damaged the image of this priest.

The issue placed the priest under the spotlight of a financial investigation.

It is the first time in the recent history that a senior member of the Vatican administration has been removed from the corridor of power.

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