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FILE - Pope Benedict XVI attends his weekly general audience in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican, on Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2005. He was the reluctant pope, a shy bookworm who preferred solitary walks in the Alps and Mozart piano concertos to the public glare and majesty of Vatican pageantry. When Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger became Pope Benedict XVI and was thrust into the footsteps of his beloved and charismatic predecessor, he said he felt a guillotine had come down on him. The Vatican announced Saturday Dec. 31, 2022 that Benedict, the former Joseph Ratzinger, had died at age 95. (AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis, File)

FILE - Pope Benedict XVI attends his weekly general audience in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican, on Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2005. He was the reluctant pope, a shy bookworm who preferred solitary walks in the Alps and Mozart piano concertos to the public glare and majesty of Vatican pageantry. When Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger became Pope Benedict XVI and was thrust into the footsteps of his beloved and charismatic predecessor, he said he felt a guillotine had come down on him. The …

December 31, 2022

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Benedict XVI, reluctant pope who chose to retire, dies at 95
December 31, 2022 8:45 a.m.

Benedict XVI, reluctant pope who chose to retire, dies at 95

VATICAN CITY (AP) — He was the reluctant pope, a shy bookworm who preferred solitary walks in the Alps and Mozart piano concertos to the public glare and majesty of Vatican pageantry. When Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger became Pope Benedict XVI and was thrust into the footsteps of his beloved and charismatic predecessor, he said he felt a guillotine had come down on him.