Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul started with a prayer for Pope Benedict XVI,"I wasn't especially surprised, but there was a sadness to the news, hearing the confirmation," said Velma Clark, a Catholic."I felt sad for him at first, but then I realized if we believe he entered the heavenly abodes, we should be very happy for him," said Calan Baniewicz from Fairmount.
Pope Benedict was the first pontiff in 600 years to resign his position rather than hold office for his entire life. The move stunned the world in 2013."I can hear my grandmother's voice in my head, what she would have said. She wasn't alive to see him resign, but she would have been very disappointed in the church and the Pope," said Aaron Treat from New York.
Archbishop Pérez called Benedict's resignation an act of unparalled selflessness and said he believes the Pope resigned for his own health. "He did the most loving thing. He did the most loving thing, the most heroic thing, he stepped away so that someone could do that better," said Perez. Archbishop Perez will hold a special mass for Pope Benedict at the Basilica tomorrow morning at 11 a.m.
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