ROME (CNS): Celebrating his 75th birthday and his 25th anniversary as a bishop, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger gave thanks for the many opportunities he has had to witness to his faith and asked forgiveness for times when he might not have been a ‘good shepherd’.
The German cardinal celebrated the anniversaries on April 20 at Rome’s Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere with a dozen cardinals and hundreds of well-wishers from his native Bavaria.
The cardinal, who is prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, submitted his resignation to Pope John Paul II on his April 16 birthday, as required by canon law, but the Pope is not expected to accept the resignation any time soon.
