Francis prays at the tomb of Celestine V, the first pope to resign

Pope Francis, who left the door open this summer to resign from the pontificate if his health worsens in the future, has made a meaningful gesture this Sunday.

Thomas Osborne
Thomas Osborne
28 August 2022 Sunday 12:30
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Francis prays at the tomb of Celestine V, the first pope to resign

Pope Francis, who left the door open this summer to resign from the pontificate if his health worsens in the future, has made a meaningful gesture this Sunday. On a four-hour visit to L'Aquila, the city that was devastated by a 2009 earthquake in central Italy, the pontiff prayed silently at the tomb of Celestine V, the first pope to resign from the pontificate in 1294. From this very symbolic scenario, the Pontiff wanted to highlight the "humility" and courage of Celestino, who only five months after taking office took a step back to return to a monastic life.

When the Vatican announced this visit, Rome was soon filled with rumors of a possible imminent resignation of the Pope, since Benedict XVI, who followed Celestine by stepping back in 2013, had also visited this tomb. Later, in an interview, the Pope denied these rumors saying that "it had not crossed his mind", although at the press conference after the papal trip to Canada he acknowledged that "it would not be a catastrophe to change the pope". “I think that at my age and with this limitation I must measure myself a little to be able to serve the Church or on the contrary think about the possibility of stepping aside. There is nothing strange about this, ”he explained, after acknowledging that the pace of the trip had tired him, at 85 years old and suffering from serious knee problems that forced him to use a wheelchair.

In his homily, Francis recalled that Celestine V is always "wrongly" remembered for having been described by Dante in the Divine Comedy as "the man who made the great rejection". "Celestino V was a courageous witness to the Gospel, because no logic of power could lock him up", he highlighted, on the day of Celestinian Pardon, and only one day after having held an unprecedented consistory in August. On Saturday, the Pope created 20 new cardinals and has gathered all the cardinals in Rome until Tuesday, in an appointment interpreted as a rehearsal for the next conclave because it is an opportunity for Francisco's cardinals to begin to know each other.

The Jesuit pope has arrived by helicopter in L'Aquila and has not hesitated to put on a firefighter's helmet as he was taken among the ruins of the cathedral, which is still under reconstruction. Later, the Pontiff greeted one by one some relatives of the 309 victims of the earthquake.