Vatican City, 20 August 2013: Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI made a short visit to Castel
Gandolfo, the summer residence of Popes, on Sunday afternoon. He recited the rosary
there and then attended a short concert of classical music. He returned to the Vatican
in the evening. This was the first time Pope emeritus, Benedict XVI, left Vatican
City since he arrived there on Thursday, 2nd May 2013, after a short stay
in Castle Gandolfo.
Pope Benedict, who retired at the end of February
this year, now lives in a former convent in the Vatican gardens. The sparsely decorated
Mater Ecclesiae is just a few hundred meters from the Vatican guesthouse where Pope
Francis has opted to live.
Pope Emeritus shares the refurbished building with
his personal secretary, Archbishop Georg Gänswein, and the four women – members of
the Catholic fellowship Communion and Liberation – who cook the pope's meals and look
after his household. Source: VR Sedoc