Cardinal Francis George said today that Pope Benedict XVI "placed the will of God for the good of the church before every other consideration" when he decided to step down.
"He has taught with clarity and charity what God has revealed to the world in Christ, he has handed on the apostolic faith, he has loved all of God’s people with all his heart," George said in a statement. "He has now shown great courage in deciding, after prayer and soul-searching, to resign his office at the end of this month.
"With the gratitude of sons and daughters in our hearts, we ask the Lord to bless him and give him strength, as we begin to pray now for the one who will succeed him as Bishop of Rome, Successor of Peter and Vicar of Christ."
Joliet Bishop Daniel Conlon said the pope's decision "is consistent with the humble disposition that I have come to recognize in him, both in my brief personal encounters with him and in his deportment generally as earthly shepherd of the church.
"He recognized that he no longer had the physical gifts necessary to carry out an office that becomes increasingly demanding," Conlon said. "He has been a steady and calm presence in the face of tumult in the world. He has persevered in Blessed John Paul II’s determination to confront the scandal of child abuse in the church."
Pope Benedict shocked the world by saying he no longer had the mental and physical strength to cope with his ministry, in an announcement that left his aides "incredulous" and will make him the first pontiff to step down since the Middle Ages.
The German-born pope, 85, admired as a hero by conservative Roman Catholics and viewed with suspicion by liberals, told cardinals in Latin that his strength had deteriorated recently. He will step down on Feb. 28 and the Vatican expects a new Pope to be chosen by the end of March.
Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi said the pope had not decided to resign because of "difficulties in the papacy" and the move had been a surprise, indicating that even his inner circle was unaware that he was about to quit.
A priest at St. Peter's Church in the Loop said the news is "surprising but not terrifying," saying it will allow the church to continue to renew itself.
“It’s a new beginning and a chance for new energy in the church,” said the Rev. Ed Shea. "This is good news.”
The selection of a new pope will offer the church the chance to continue its emergence into the “the modern light, the modern world,” Shea said.
It will also provide a chance to choose a pope from Africa or South America, he said, to reflect the growth of the church on those continents.
“I was shocked, like everybody else,” Father Ed Shea said. “It kind of surprised me that we didn’t know about it ahead of time.”
As worshipers left a morning mass at St. Peter’s this morning, several said the pope’s announcement had caught them completely by surprise.
“I hadn’t read anything leading up to it about that he was failing in health or anything like that,” said Michael Muldoon of La Grange. “I knew he was in his mid-80s, but I didn’t know that it was coming.”
Asked about the selection of Benedict’s successor, Muldoon said he’d like to see a more youthful pope, “someone a little more forward thinking, someone a little more accepting.”
At St. Alphonsus Church, which still offers a Sunday mass in German, parishioners said they were stunned by the resignation.
Errol Kunz, a 65-year-old retiree who lives by the church in Lakeview, said the Rev. Michael O'Connell mentioned the news at the beginning of the 8:30 a.m. Mass.
"I was shocked," Kunz said. "I couldn't believe it."
Others had heard about the resignation when they woke up.
When a news alert flashed on her phone around 7 a.m., Kathleen Falk said she was confused. "I always thought the popes don't retire," said Falk, a 27-year-old nurse who has been attending St. Alphonsus for five years.
"If you can't fulfill the duties to guide the church, then you can't argue with that," Falk added.
Ian McBride, a 29-year-old social worker who has been going to St. Alphonsus for a few years, called it a "measure of humility" that the pope could recognize his health issues and step down.
For the pope's legacy, "time will tell," McBride said. "In the American church, dealing with the abuse and all that — he took that personally. . .He seemed to be very genuine and ashamed of how things happened."
Contributing: Reuters
Cardinal George: Pope showing 'great courage' in stepping down
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