|
| 25 Apr 2017 07:22 PM |
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I write to you all today to communicate a decision of great importance. After having repeatedly examined my conscience before God, I have come to the certainty that my works, due to this unification, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine ministry. I am well aware that this ministry, due to its essential spiritual nature, must be carried out not only with words and deeds, but no less with prayer and suffering. However, in today’s world, subject to so many rapid changes and shaken by questions of deep relevance for the life of faith, in order to govern the barque of Saint Peter and proclaim the Gospel, both recognizing that there cannot be multiple pontiffs and excercising great humility, to the extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me. For this reason, and well aware of the seriousness of this act, with full freedom I declare that I renounce the ministry of Bishop of Rome, Successor of Saint Peter, entrusted to me by the Cardinals on 14 April 2017, in such a way, that as from 26 April 2017, at 20:00 hours, the See of Rome, the See of Saint Peter, will be vacant and there will be one remaining Pope on the website.
Dear peoples,I thank you most sincerely for all the love and work with which you have supported me in my ministry and I ask pardon for all my defects. And now, let us entrust the Holy ###### to the care of Our Supreme Pastor, Our Lord Jesus Christ, and implore his holy Mother Mary, so that she may assist the clergy of the unified Chvrch, and especially the new Holy Father. With regard to myself, I wish to also devotedly serve the Holy ###### of God in the future through a life dedicated to prayer and through an episcopal ministry, close to the new Pontiff.
From the Vatican, 25 April 2017 |
|
|
| Report Abuse |
|