VATICAN CITY, Jan 1 — Pope Francis marked the Roman Catholic Church’s traditional World Day of Peace on Sunday but the start of the new year at the Vatican was overshadowed by...
VATICAN CITY, Jan 1 — Pope Francis marked the Roman Catholic Church’s traditional World Day of Peace on Sunday but the start of the new year at the Vatican was overshadowed by the death of his predecessor, Benedict.
Jan. 1 is also the feast of the Mother of God and in his homily, Francis asked the Madonna to accompany “our beloved” Pope Emeritus Benedict “on his passage from this world to God”.Francis also appealed for peace, alluding to war-torn countries, including Ukraine, where Russia continued intense attacks on New Year’s Day.
In it, he asked in a general, spiritual way, that God would welcome him to internal life “despite all my sins and insufficiencies”.While tributes to the former pope continued to be made by world leaders, and conservative members of the faithful, others were highly critical of his pontificate.