Benedict XVI Recognizes Difficulties During Last Audience at Vatican
At his last public audience on the eve of his resignation, at St. Peter’s Basilica, before more than 100,000 of the faithful, Pope Benedict XVI recognized the existence of turbulent waters at the Vatican.
Joseph Ratzinger, who will hand over his powers at the Holy See tomorrow at 8 p.m. (7 p.m. GMT) admitted that over the past eight years there had been “moments of light and joy, but also moments that had not been easy…moments of turbulent seas and strong winds.”
The head of the Catholic church pointed out that when he was elected Pope on April 19, 2005, he questioned whether God really loved him. “It is a huge burden that was put on my shoulders.”
Regarding speculation about his true motives for stepping down, the Holy Father reiterated that he took this step with full knowledge of the gravity and novelty of the decision, but also with serenity.
For the Pontiff, love for the Church also means having the courage to make difficult and painful decisions, always for the good of the Church, not for oneself, he pointed out.
At 85 years of age, Benedict XVI became the first pope to resign in almost 600 years, something that forced adaptations to the ceremony for his departure from the Vatican and the election of his successor, including the time period for convening the 117 prelates assigned with this task.
At the end of his last audience, Ratzinger traveled by helicopter to the Castel Gandolfo villa outside Rome, where he will live for close to two months.
The Pontiff also published what is apparently his last message on his Twitter account, @pentifex, where he called for people to sense the joy of being Christian. After he steps down, the account will be closed.
Last week, Benedict XVI issued a decree to change certain regulations for the meeting where the new pope will be elected.
Spain Reported 6.7-percent Deficit in 2012, Says Rajoy
Spain reported a public deficit of 6.7 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2012, President Mariano Rajoy said on Wednesday.
Speaking at a session in the Congress of Deputies to monitor the work of his administration, Rajoy described that figure as an achievement, although it is four-tenths higher than the official target.
After reporting 9.4 percent in 2011, last year’s deficit will be the definite figure that will be reported to the European Commission (EC), in contrast to 6.3 percent of the GDP agreed upon with Brussels, Rajoy pointed out.
That result means “a huge effort” for Spanish society, noted Rajoy, who implemented a severe austerity program to save 150 billion euros by 2014 after he took office in 2011.
At the debate on the state of the nation last week, Rajoy, who is also the president of the rightwing Popular Party (PP), said that the negative balance in public accounts would remain under 7 percent of the GDP in 2012, although he did not disclose the exact figure.
Regarding the gloomy predictions on the Spanish economy published last Friday by the EC, the executive branch of the European Union (EU), the conservative leader minimized their importance.
The important thing is to implement a policy of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms, and to continue cleaning up the financial system, “because that will give us the opportunity to grow and create jobs,” he noted.
The EU predicted a 1.4-percent contraction of Spain’s GDP this year and a new increase in unemployment, which rose to nearly six million jobless people (26.02 percent) in 2012.
Brussels also predicted that Spain would continue in recession in 2013, and would report a slight growth of 0.8 percent of the GDP in 2014.
Road Accident Causes 35 Dead in Kenya
A tragic road accident caused today 35 dead and about 50 injured in Tulimani area, near the town of Mwingi, Kenya, police said.
The incident occurred in the early hours when the driver of a bus loaded with passengers lost control, left the road and rollover.
A police chief told reporters that the bus traveled from Nairobi to the northern city of Garissa, and the injured were taken to nearby hospitals.
Many of the injured are in serious health conditions, according to the source.
The causes of the accident are still unknown, but some survivors said that many of the passengers were standing and the vehicle was overloaded.