News of Pope Benedict XVI’s decision to retire triggered shock — as well as praise, respect and admiration for the church leader.
At St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Midtown yesterday, Liz van Arsdell of Chicago shared the mixed emotions of many worshippers.
“I am shocked. [But] I respect his decision,’’ van Arsdell said. “It’s the right decision. I’m praying for him.”
President Obama said, “On behalf of Americans everywhere, Michelle and I wish to extend our appreciation and prayers to His Holiness.”
He added that he and the first lady “warmly remember our meeting with the Holy Father in 2009, and I have appreciated our work together over these last four years.”
Members of the clergy admitted that even they were caught off guard by Pope Benedict’s stepping down.
But they said they understood his decision.
“It was a surprise, but I immediately recalled that he had a stroke in 1991, I believe, and has had trouble getting around of late,” said the Rev. Bernard Carman, a priest at Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
“Once I started to think about it, it made sense,” Carman said. “This way, [the cardinals] can plan more carefully [for his successor].”
Carman added that he felt compassion for the pope “because, obviously, it would be a very difficult decision on his part . . . Here’s someone who has 1.2 billion Catholics looking to him, and he had the honesty to admit he had to step down. I admire that.”
Mayor Bloomberg said Pope Benedict’s age, 85, “sounds young to me.’’
But he wished the retiring pontiff a long life and a chance to relax.
Meanwhile, world leaders evaluated the Benedictine era favorably.
“He is and remains one of the most significant religious thinkers of our time,” said German Chancellor Angela Merkel, a pastor’s daughter.
British Prime Minister David Cameron said Benedict would be “missed as a spiritual leader to millions” who had “worked tirelessly to strengthen Britain’s relations with the Holy See.”
Israel’s Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger said relations between the Vatican and the Jewish state had never been better, thanks to Benedict.
“I greatly appreciate him for his immense activity to interfaith connection that has contributed greatly to the reduction of anti-Semitism in the world,” Metzger said.
At St. Peter’s Square in Rome, stunned Catholics gathered to express their dismay.
“I love Benedict. We’re really shocked he’s resigning, because he wasn’t pope for long enough,” said the Rev. Sebastian Mazur, 21.
One of the most glowing tributes came from Brazil’s Catholic bishops, who hailed the outgoing pontiff’s “humility and greatness.”
Closer to the Vatican, Italian President Giorgio Napolitano saluted his “courage” over the decision to quit.
Bishop Marcelo Sanchez Sorondo, chancellor of the Vatican’s Pontifical Academy of Sciences, said the pope’s announcement had caused “dismay and great sadness because he is a great pope.”