No living pope had handed off the keys of St. Peter since Gregory XII in 1415. If Pope Benedict had only waited some 14 months to announce his retirement — or abdication, or vacation — we ...
For almost a decade there were in effect two popes living at close quarters in the Vatican, because Benedict stayed in the Vatican Gardens at the Mater Ecclesiae monastery, appearing ...
One of Francis’ lasting reforms will be his reshaping of the papacy to embrace simplicity and humility. In his new ...