Pope's final address: God was asleep on my watch
The Pope has told a huge crowd of followers that his papacy had moments of joy
but at times is "seemed like the Lord was sleeping", in his last audience in
St Peter's Square.
ddressing an estimated 150,000 people in St Peter's Square the day before he
steps down, Benedict said his crisis-hit papacy had included moments of joy
but also difficulty when, "It seemed like the Lord was sleeping."
Benedict XVI referred to "stormy waters and headwinds" during his
pontificate, but he said God would not let the Church "sink".
"The Lord gave us days of sun and of light breeze, days in which the
fishing was good. There were also moments when there were stormy waters and
headwinds," he said.
Benedict thanked his cardinals, colleagues and ordinary faithful for their
support and for respecting his decision to become the first pope in 600
years to resign. He said that "to love the church means also to have
the courage to take difficult, painful decisions, always keeping the good of
the church in mind, not oneself."
He told thousands that his decision to resign "is the fruit of a serene
trust in God's will and a deep love of Christ's church."