The Rome diocese was set to offer a special mass for Pope Emeritus Benedict at the Basilica of St John Lateran later today
The German, who in 2013 was the first pope since the Middle Ages to resign as head of the worldwide Catholic Church, has become increasingly fragile over the years.
Pope Francis called for people around the world to pray for him, before visiting him at the Mater Ecclesiae monastery. The Vatican statement said Emeritus Benedict was receiving constant medical attention and his condition was under control. One of them, 43-year-old Tobias Ferstl, prayed with his eyes closed for several minutes in front of the photograph.
Meanwhile German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, Archbishop of Munich, told churchgoers:"This morning I received the news that there is great concern in Rome about the health of the Pope Emeritus. And so we especially want to include him in our prayers,"His eight-year pontificate was marked by multiple crises, including the global clerical sex abuse scandal, which has dogged him in retirement as well.
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