Archbishop Tartaglia on the listening and humble Pope

(Vatican Radio) The President of the Bishops' Conference of Scotland, has paid tribute to Pope Benedict XVI as a "gentle and humble" as well as a listening Pope. Archbishop of Glasgow, Philip Tartaglia, made the comments following the Holy Father’s decision to step down from the Papacy on February 28th.

Speaking to Lydia O’Kane, Archbishop Tartaglia described his immediate reaction on hearing the news. “We were all very surprised because it was completely unexpected and in many respects totally unprecedented

The Archbishop was appointed by Pope Benedict to head the Archdiocese of Glasgow and he says he had the opportunity to meet the Holy Father on a number of occasions.

One of those moments was when the Archbishop was then the Bishop of Paisley. He recalled a private meeting with the Pope for 15 minutes during the Scottish Bishops’ Ad Limina visits. Archbishop Tartaglia described Pope Benedict as being “gentle and kind”. “His humility and fatherliness was obvious really, so that was a very special moment.”

He goes on to say that the Pope’s priority is never himself, it’s always Christ and always the Church and I see that in this decision.

Listen to Lydia O’Kane’s interview with Archbishop Tartaglia of Glasgow