:00:12. > :00:20.$:/STARTFEED. This is BBC World News.
:00:20. > :00:24.This is a news special coverage of the moment us to news that the Pope,
:00:24. > :00:27.Benedict 16th has announced he is to resign, leaving his post at the
:00:27. > :00:31.end of February, February 28th. The statement from the Vatican says
:00:31. > :00:37.he's come to the certainty that "My strength due to an advanced age are
:00:37. > :00:41.no longer suited to the adequate exercise of the ministry". He says
:00:41. > :00:45.in today's world, subject to so many changes and shaken by
:00:45. > :00:49.questions of deep relevance for the life of faith, he feels that
:00:49. > :00:54.strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the
:00:54. > :00:57.last few months has deteriorated in me to the extent that I've had to
:00:57. > :01:03.recognise my incapacity to adequately fulfil the ministry
:01:03. > :01:07.entrusted to me. I'm joined by Emily Buchanan. This
:01:07. > :01:13.is an absolutely astonishing announcement? It certainly is. It
:01:13. > :01:22.just makes me think back to the last year or two of John Paul II's
:01:22. > :01:26.reign as Pope. Joseph Ratzinger, now Benedict XVI would have been
:01:26. > :01:30.close to him and effectively running the church. So perhaps he's
:01:30. > :01:33.looking at the situation thinking he doesn't want to be in a
:01:33. > :01:38.situation where he's thinking he's inadequate and unable to do his
:01:38. > :01:42.day-to-day work and having to hand over to other people. That's
:01:42. > :01:47.effectively what John Paul II had to do. This is the first
:01:47. > :01:51.resignation in nearly 600 years. People are bound to ask the
:01:51. > :01:56.convulsions around the child abuse saga that's rocked the Catholic
:01:56. > :02:02.Church - has that been too much for this Pope to handle? Is there any
:02:02. > :02:05.smoking gun, you know, accusations that the Vatican knew more than it
:02:05. > :02:10.was allowed to say publicly? Many questions raised by this? There
:02:10. > :02:13.will be many, many questions, absolutely, and there's been a lot
:02:13. > :02:17.of pressure on the Vatican, probably more than at any other
:02:18. > :02:24.time over the sexual abuse scandals which don't seem to end.
:02:24. > :02:29.Just to remind us very quickly, we have seen this surface in Europe?
:02:29. > :02:35.And America. There have been legal cases, there's been questions about
:02:35. > :02:42.compensation. These are pictures from today of the Pope, just to let
:02:42. > :02:46.everyone know, Pope Benidict XVIth, 85 years old, the first Pontiff to
:02:46. > :02:51.announce his resignation in nearly 600 years. He'll resign at the end
:02:51. > :02:56.of February. The Vatican is saying that they'll of course then begin
:02:56. > :03:00.the succession process, possibly to be completed by the end of March.
:03:00. > :03:04.He has been a very devisive figure, not only on the whole child abuse
:03:04. > :03:08.scandal and how the Pope should have handled that, how the Vatican
:03:08. > :03:14.should have handled that, but all the other questions about birth
:03:14. > :03:19.control and gay marriage? He was perhaps even more devisive before
:03:19. > :03:22.he took office. He seems to have million lowed a bit. But all the
:03:22. > :03:27.questions on whether the church is allowed to change its views on
:03:27. > :03:31.allowing women a greater role, you know, the whole question of married
:03:31. > :03:35.priests which of course has become much sharper when you've seen the
:03:35. > :03:39.drift of Anglican priests into the Catholic Church and, of course,
:03:39. > :03:42.they are already married. That's meant many people started asking
:03:42. > :03:46.the question, shouldn't Catholic priests be allowed to marry? There
:03:46. > :03:53.are many priests soon to retire, certainly in the Western world.
:03:53. > :03:59.There's a lot of concern as to whether there'll be enough priests.
:03:59. > :04:03.Also online Emily is Steve Evans in Germany. How has the news been
:04:04. > :04:10.received there? How was he thought of in the time since he was
:04:10. > :04:14.appointed Pope? I think it's fair to say with shock.
:04:14. > :04:18.Chancellor Merkel's spokesman was giving a press conference a short
:04:18. > :04:25.time ago. The routine Government press conference. It was put to him
:04:25. > :04:31.and he said it would be a very moving announcement so they clearly
:04:31. > :04:40.had no inkling that it was about to come but he said it would be a very
:04:40. > :04:43.moving announcement. A spokesman for Chancellor Merkel said the
:04:43. > :04:47.German-born Pope deserved respect and gratitude for his nearly eight
:04:47. > :04:56.years as Pontiff. But he started off with a pretty controversial
:04:56. > :05:01.record in the eyes of many? Yes. You were talking earlier about the
:05:01. > :05:06.war years, for example, and there's been controversy amongst historians
:05:06. > :05:15.about that. He found himself in 1941, his 14th birthday passed and
:05:15. > :05:19.under the laws at the time, you join that - the youth at that time.
:05:19. > :05:23.According to his brother, he was unenthusiastic about it, took no
:05:24. > :05:30.more part than he had to as a lad living in this country at that time.
:05:30. > :05:34.But of course, if you have a Pope who had been no more namly at least
:05:34. > :05:38.in the Nazi party, that becomes controversial, particularly given
:05:38. > :05:44.the controversy over the role of the Catholic Church during that
:05:44. > :05:50.time also -- nominally. His defenders pointed out that he has a
:05:51. > :05:55.disabled cousin who was executed, killed, murdered by the Nazis under
:05:55. > :05:59.thaw eugenics programme. So all kinds of controversy, even
:05:59. > :06:03.controversy when he came on his first official visit to this
:06:03. > :06:08.country two years ago, 18 months ago, because the victims of child
:06:08. > :06:13.abuse, for example, wanted a much more public recognition of what
:06:13. > :06:18.they'd gone through. What he said was, the church was a
:06:18. > :06:22.fisherman's net which takes in bad fish and good fish, so he wrestled
:06:22. > :06:27.with that problem. At the same time, the quote progressives and quote
:06:27. > :06:33.within the church in Germany were saying there should have been more
:06:33. > :06:39.movement on married priests, for example, and on recognition of what
:06:39. > :06:45.the celebat priesthood had, the background to the whole child abuse
:06:45. > :06:50.controversy. He tried to steer a middle way between those two
:06:50. > :06:56.factions, if you like, and in the meantime, the numbers of Catholics
:06:56. > :06:59.within Germany plummeted. On the latest estimate something like
:06:59. > :07:05.181,000 Catholics left the church the year before he came.
:07:05. > :07:08.So, a very, very difficult path to tread. In that kind of
:07:08. > :07:11.controversial mine field really, there were people who weren't happy.
:07:12. > :07:16.Thank you very much indeed there for now in Germany. We are going to
:07:16. > :07:21.cross to Spain. A deeply Catholic country. Tom Burridge is there.
:07:21. > :07:26.What reaction in the last few moments to this moment us to news,
:07:26. > :07:30.Pope Benidict XVI is to resign? Yes. We actually have got through
:07:30. > :07:35.to a priest in a parish here in Madrid who, you know, like everyone,
:07:35. > :07:38.said he was hugely surprised. He heard no rumours, had no
:07:38. > :07:42.conversations with colleagues, friends within religious circles
:07:42. > :07:46.here in the Spanish capital about any possibility that the Pope might
:07:46. > :07:52.be setting down. He talks of his consternation really at the fact
:07:52. > :07:57.that he had no inclination that this was coming and is surprised
:07:57. > :08:01.like everyone else. Has there been criticism of the Pope there as
:08:01. > :08:04.there has been in other parts of the world, the way the Vatican
:08:04. > :08:08.followed the child abuse allegations? He followed a very
:08:08. > :08:14.popular leader of the church and how is he regarded in Spain?
:08:14. > :08:18.I think Spain has an uneasy relationship with the church,
:08:18. > :08:22.modern state, that is. It's traditionally a Catholic country.
:08:22. > :08:26.The older generations of this country are still very Catholic.
:08:26. > :08:32.Younger Spain is increasingly secular and the Pope came to
:08:32. > :08:38.Barcelona back in 2010. He had a visit then. He was very critical of
:08:38. > :08:42.the previous policies of the former Prime Minister of Spain, Louis
:08:42. > :08:48.Zappatero. He brought in gay marriage laws, legalised gay
:08:48. > :08:53.marriage, relaxed laws over abortion, laws that went down very
:08:53. > :08:56.controversially within a certain section in Spain. Spain is the
:08:57. > :09:02.interesting contradick shen one you talk about religion. Some parts of
:09:02. > :09:07.the society are very Catholic and will be watching with huge interest
:09:07. > :09:11.here today -- contradiction. There will be a lot of shock but there
:09:11. > :09:17.will be another section of society, the left-wing of Spain, the younger
:09:17. > :09:20.generations in Spain, who're increasingly secular and
:09:20. > :09:23.increasingly disenfranchised or even distanced from the Catholic
:09:23. > :09:32.Church. Thank you very much indeed, Tom
:09:32. > :09:40.Burridge, in Madrid. The Israeli Chief Rabbi's praised the Pope's
:09:40. > :09:47.interreligious beliefs. We are joined on the phone by Lavinia birn,
:09:47. > :09:51.a former theologian and Catholic none. Tell us your views? Well, in
:09:51. > :09:57.this extraordinary circumstance, we are moving him from office --
:09:57. > :10:05.removing him from office, it's a moment of trauma for the Catholic
:10:05. > :10:10.Church. Can you explain why that is? I think the sense of shock of
:10:10. > :10:16.leadership suddenly not being there any longer. The leadership of this
:10:16. > :10:22.Pope has been principally in theology. I think he found pastoral
:10:22. > :10:30.care far more difficult, hence the fact he didn't respond particularly
:10:30. > :10:35.quickly to issues around the abuse of children, married priests and so
:10:35. > :10:39.on. Hasn't that effectively threatened the very foundations of
:10:40. > :10:45.the whole church though? Isn't it actually time for the Catholic
:10:45. > :10:52.Church to move on to modernise? It needs a fresh start? I would
:10:53. > :11:01.certainly say so. The person who comes in next has got to take a
:11:01. > :11:11.step backwards and think about the use of power in the church. All of
:11:11. > :11:11.
:11:11. > :11:16.these issues can actually become a heading. The Vatican wants to
:11:16. > :11:20.represent leadership in the church and at the same time wants to
:11:20. > :11:26.enable by diversification and by the growth of local command.
:11:26. > :11:32.were saying earlier about the way that he handled pastoral care
:11:32. > :11:36.versus the theology part of his task. Was he the wrong Pope for the
:11:36. > :11:46.wrong time? Obviously, the child abuse scandals rocked the church
:11:46. > :11:50.after his name was announced? Evidently. But they are all covered
:11:50. > :11:58.with the same brush and there is suspicion there would be cover-up,
:11:58. > :12:03.so of course that needs addressing. I'm very sorry that he feels he's
:12:03. > :12:11.not well enough to go on, because part of the witness of the briefest
:12:11. > :12:16.Pope was that he did go on, he killed himself in the job, John
:12:16. > :12:23.Paul II, and there was something rather amazing about the fact that
:12:24. > :12:28.he persevered. Even when he was so evidently ill... I just want to let
:12:28. > :12:33.people know that we are looking at pictures of a press conference from
:12:33. > :12:38.the Vatican that's happening live. We are trying to get the sound and
:12:38. > :12:42.translation on that because the Pope announces his resignation in
:12:43. > :12:48.Latin. We saum some pictures of him making that announcement earlier --
:12:48. > :12:52.saw some pictures of him making that announcement earlier. To an
:12:52. > :13:00.ordinary Catholic, can I ask you, do they feel a personal connection
:13:00. > :13:05.to the Pope still? We prayed for the Pope every time mass is said.
:13:05. > :13:13.But I think that we have far less a sense of connection to this Pope
:13:13. > :13:20.because he seemed bemused when he was in public. He was enchanted
:13:20. > :13:26.when he came to England. Yet he didn't make a real connection with
:13:26. > :13:29.people. Why was that? Because of his own personality? Because of his
:13:29. > :13:33.history as a young boy controversially referred to? Was it
:13:33. > :13:41.the way he was not handling the many criticisms and questions
:13:41. > :13:46.coming to the Vatican? I think it was the fact he spent so much time
:13:47. > :13:53.in the congregation for the doctrine of the faith, making
:13:53. > :14:02.inquiries about people's Orthodoxy. That put him on the back foot.
:14:02. > :14:06.He said that it's both strength and mind and body that are necessary
:14:06. > :14:09.and have deteriorated to the point where with full freedom knowing the
:14:09. > :14:13.seriousness of that, he is resigning. Is that seen in any way
:14:13. > :14:21.as letting down all the many millions of members of the church?
:14:21. > :14:29.I don't think letting down. I mean, he needed evidently to gauge his
:14:29. > :14:37.own strength. But I do think that the question of witness of an older
:14:37. > :14:44.person struggling is one you can't duck. Does that mean when his
:14:44. > :14:47.successor is appointed, age has to be a critical factor? It could be,
:14:47. > :14:55.couldn't it. How do you think Catholics will feel today? Well,
:14:55. > :15:00.baffled and, in a sense, traumatised because leadership is
:15:00. > :15:04.evaporating before their very eyes. Do you feel that what the Pope now
:15:04. > :15:09.says still has the same influence as it did? Certainly in Europe, of
:15:09. > :15:13.course, you know, church attendance has fallen over many, many years,
:15:13. > :15:17.in other parts of the world, it's on the increase. In a practical
:15:17. > :15:20.sense, how does the leadership of the Catholic Church, the one person
:15:20. > :15:30.that is Head of This vast organisation, how does that affect
:15:30. > :15:34.
:15:34. > :15:40.the ordinary lives of people? It could be there'd be a different
:15:40. > :15:48.view of loyalty and it would be mutual. OK, we will leave it there.
:15:48. > :15:54.Thanks very much indeed for joining us. We are joined now by our
:15:54. > :15:58.correspondent. In Africa, of course - you are in South Africa, but the
:15:58. > :16:02.Catholic Church - a huge reach across the continent - what's the
:16:02. > :16:06.reaction there? It is estimated the size of the Catholic Church in
:16:06. > :16:10.Africa is 158 million out of a population of 800 million. It is
:16:10. > :16:16.one of the fastest growing regions in the world for the Catholic
:16:16. > :16:20.Church, if not the fastest. There are 16 Cardinals from Africa. By
:16:20. > :16:25.2025, it is estimated, the membership of the Catholic Church
:16:25. > :16:31.will have risen to 230 million. There'll be some astonishment at
:16:31. > :16:39.this news as the news begins to spread across the continent. How is
:16:39. > :16:49.the Pope, this Pope, regarded in Africa? He's made visits to Africa
:16:49. > :16:54.since becoming Pope. He went in 2011. His first was a join trip to
:16:54. > :16:57.Cameron and Anglo-la in 2009. He said that condoms were not
:16:57. > :17:03.necessarily the answer to the HIV crisis in Africa, despite the fact
:17:03. > :17:08.that 22 million people across the continent are infected with the HIV
:17:08. > :17:13.virus. He said that condoms might only make the situation worse. That
:17:13. > :17:20.drew some criticism from AIDS campaigners, including the
:17:20. > :17:30.Treatment Action Campaign, which is the leading group. He said the Pope
:17:30. > :17:33.
:17:33. > :17:37.should -- they said the Pope should Just to pick up on the question of
:17:37. > :17:43.sexual health - the fact he made those statements, regardless of the
:17:43. > :17:47.HIV crisis that is still gripping Africa, doesn't that, you know,
:17:47. > :17:52.mean that he actually was the wrong person at the wrong time? First of
:17:52. > :17:55.all, his remarks would not have come as a surprise to many on the
:17:55. > :18:00.African continent. A lot of conservative values there and a
:18:00. > :18:06.very strong religious body there who would share those views. One of
:18:06. > :18:09.the things that the Catholic Church has done a key role in on the
:18:09. > :18:14.continent of Africa is despite the insistence on no condoms, one thing
:18:14. > :18:21.the Catholic Church has done is play a leading role when it helps
:18:22. > :18:26.people suffering from HIV/AIDS. Over 50% of the interventions, in
:18:26. > :18:30.whatever form they can, whether helping those who are HIV-positive,
:18:30. > :18:35.or those suffering from AIDS in any form, are run by the Catholic
:18:35. > :18:42.Church, directly or indirectly. am hearing a report from AP that
:18:42. > :18:46.the Pope's doctor has told him not to take any transatlantic trips for
:18:46. > :18:52.health reasons. We don't know more than the official statement that
:18:52. > :18:58.the Pope feels that his meantal and physical health was not -- menal
:18:58. > :19:02.and physical health was not sufficient for him to carry on in
:19:02. > :19:08.this role. It was noticeable when he came to England how people were
:19:09. > :19:11.just so excited to get a glimpse of this figure. The same, of course,
:19:12. > :19:16.in Africa. Especially on the continent of Africa, where he
:19:16. > :19:21.generated a lot of excitement and support there. The Catholic Church
:19:21. > :19:26.on continent has a strong influence, as you just heard being spoken
:19:27. > :19:32.about there. Countries like Nigeria, you have the Democratic Republic of
:19:32. > :19:36.Congo and French-speaking Africa, very high Catholic populations in
:19:36. > :19:39.those countries. The other thing the Pope tends to inspire on the
:19:39. > :19:45.continent and the Catholic Church, is they tend to see the Catholic
:19:45. > :19:50.Church taking a front line in civic action, that sort of thing.
:19:50. > :19:53.Elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo - in the
:19:53. > :20:00.aftermath of that the Catholic Church was playing a key role at
:20:00. > :20:03.the front of trying to address those issues in Cameron, recently a
:20:03. > :20:09.retired Cardinal criticising the President over corruption and the
:20:09. > :20:13.record there. So, this is something that is seen a lot on the continent
:20:13. > :20:21.when people look at the Catholic Church and the Pope. I know it
:20:21. > :20:23.might seem early to speak about who might come yet. People will be
:20:23. > :20:27.lobbying soon. It is very interesting you should say that. Do
:20:27. > :20:33.you remember the last time when he came on, the replacement - there
:20:33. > :20:37.was a lot of excitement on the continent, could this be the time
:20:37. > :20:42.we get an African Pope and one from Nigeria was being talked about. I
:20:42. > :20:47.have been looking at our Facebook page, BBC Africa right now, a lot
:20:48. > :20:52.of comments there, saying is it time now for an African Pope to
:20:52. > :21:01.come on? The question of succession and replacement. What sort of
:21:01. > :21:06.figure? He is widely seen as conservative. As many religious are
:21:06. > :21:10.conservative when it comes to issues. He has a lot of support on
:21:10. > :21:13.the continent and especially in the global south. So, he's the kind of
:21:13. > :21:18.figure that would attract a lot of support in that sense, but we'll
:21:18. > :21:23.have to wait and see what happens and who he will run against - if at
:21:23. > :21:30.all his name was being considered. Just to let everyone know, there is
:21:30. > :21:34.a statement from the Israeli Chief Rabbi praising the Pope's
:21:34. > :21:37.interreligious outreach, saying relations between Israel and the
:21:38. > :21:43.Vatican have never been better. They hope that trend will continue.
:21:43. > :21:49.It goes on to say that he thinks that the Pope deserves a lot of
:21:49. > :21:54.credit for advancing into religious links between Judaism, Christianity
:21:54. > :21:58.and Islam. We broadcast the Pope's Easter messages, the New Year
:21:58. > :22:03.messages and the global following, despite falling attendances in
:22:03. > :22:12.Europe, the global following is still vast. It is vast. In Africa,
:22:12. > :22:17.it is actually growing. You heard Peter Biles talking about the
:22:17. > :22:21.number. When it comes to numbers on the continent is the rise of the
:22:21. > :22:27.Evangelical charges which have attracted, especially, the younger,
:22:27. > :22:32.the middle class, the aspirational group, a lot going to the
:22:32. > :22:36.Evangelical churches. That has challenged the more established
:22:36. > :22:40.church. Despite that, numbers have continued to grow. A Vatican
:22:40. > :22:49.spokesman saying the Pope is not resigning because of difficulties
:22:49. > :22:52.in papacy. The official reason is the Pope
:22:52. > :22:57.felt his strength of mind and body are necessary strengths, which he
:22:57. > :23:01.feels in the last few months has deteriorated to such an extent that
:23:01. > :23:08.he felt he was unable to continue. It is an absolutely historic moment.
:23:08. > :23:14.We have not seen the resignation of a Pope for nearly 600 years.
:23:14. > :23:19.To what degree is the personality of a Pope - the actual human being
:23:19. > :23:23.behind the office - how much does that matter to ordinary Catholics?
:23:23. > :23:26.A lot. Especially to those Catholics who would be on the
:23:26. > :23:30.African continent because many of them would have a lot of challenges
:23:30. > :23:34.they are dealing with. If in the personality of the Pope they can
:23:34. > :23:39.see someone who is approachable, someone who seems to radiate
:23:39. > :23:43.empathy and has a sense of understanding of hardship and knows
:23:43. > :23:48.what it means to aspire to be in a better place, they connect with
:23:48. > :23:52.that Pope. His predecessor was popular on the continent, as indeed
:23:52. > :23:57.he has been. You talked about there about how we have not seen the
:23:57. > :24:04.resignation of a Pope for 600 years. I was looking at our Facebook page
:24:04. > :24:08.where a lot of viewers and listeners are having reactions put.
:24:08. > :24:12.There is a comment I have seen a lot - I didn't know it was possible
:24:12. > :24:17.for a Pope to resign. So, for many of them as well this comes as a
:24:17. > :24:21.surprise, because they didn't know it was possible. Just our Europe
:24:21. > :24:25.editor is filing a report for us, saying that it was believed that
:24:25. > :24:31.the Pope might have had two mild strokes and that in recent months
:24:31. > :24:36.there have been signs that the Pope's health was deteriorating.
:24:36. > :24:42.Steve Evans, our correspondent, I believe is in Germany. And Steve,
:24:42. > :24:45.the revelations about sexual and physical abuse of children in
:24:45. > :24:49.Catholic institutions - the arguments about women priests and
:24:49. > :24:54.so on, how much of that has brought down the reputation of this Pope?
:24:54. > :24:57.Or how much of that is seen as a side issue by those who support the
:24:57. > :25:06.Church? I think it's absolutely central.
:25:06. > :25:10.In a way, you can, well, on the latest figures, 181,000 - are
:25:10. > :25:16.181,000 fewer Catholics than there were the previous year. And the
:25:16. > :25:21.critics of the Pope would say that is because of the abuse scandal and
:25:21. > :25:26.the failure of the Catholic hierarchy to deal with it in a full
:25:26. > :25:34.manner - if I can put it that way. Somebody has just handed me a bit
:25:34. > :25:38.of paper. One of the papers here is quoting an interview or something
:25:38. > :25:43.he said in an interview quite recently. It's in German.Ly try and
:25:43. > :25:52.translate it as I go along. If the Pope comes to the clear recognition
:25:52. > :25:57.that his physical strength is not there, then he has a duty to resign.
:25:57. > :26:01.Steve, I will just interrupt you. I want to tell everyone you are
:26:02. > :26:06.looking at pictures from today of the Pope, we believe making that
:26:06. > :26:15.resignation statement in Latin, within the Vatican. Sorry to
:26:15. > :26:22.interrupt you T Vatican spokesman said it has left -- the Italian
:26:22. > :26:28.Prime Minister said, "I am greatly shaken by this unexpected news."
:26:28. > :26:32.These are the pictures of Pope Benedict XVI making his historic
:26:33. > :26:37.and dramatic announcement, in Latin, in the Vatican, that he is to
:26:37. > :26:44.resign. He is going to leave his post, where he was appointed some
:26:44. > :26:47.eight years ago. He will leave at the end of February, February 28th.
:26:47. > :26:54.This news is simply shaking the Catholic Church worldwide. He's the