Happy Birthday, dear Pope

As a man grows older: papal milestones prompt celebration, speculation

The Pope first used a wheeled platform, which the Vatican said was intended to reduce the physical toll on the Pope, Oct. 16. Pope Benedict will turn 85 April 16.

Pope John Paul II considered the question of resigning because of age. One of the people he discussed it with is now the Pope. Will this Pope resign or die in office?

Pope Benedict XVI's 85th birthday, April 16, and the seventh anniversary of his election, April 19, are obviously occasions for wishing the Pope well and reflecting on the events of his reign thus far. Inevitably, however, these milestones also prompt speculation about what Vatican officials and observers refer to diplomatically as "papal transition." 

Pope Benedict, after all, is already the sixth-oldest Pope since the 1400s, when records became available. It has been almost two years since he told a German interviewer, "My forces are diminishing" and that, when it comes to public appearances, "I wonder whether I can make it even from a purely physical point of view."

For full story see The B.C. Catholic website.