At a recent ceremony for the papal consistory, in which Pope Francis appointed 19 new cardinals, there was a surprise guest: Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.
Benedict was dressed in white and sat at the far end of the front row. After processing through St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Francis walked over to Benedict and greeted him. They both embraced with smiles, and then Pope Francis ascended to the altar.
This is one of just a handful of times in the last year the world has seen Benedict who, before resigning from the papacy, said that he would be "hidden to the world."
Brantly Millegan is an Assistant Editor for Aleteia. He is also Co-Founder and Co-Editor of Second Nature, Co-Director of the International Institute for the Study of Technology and Christianity, and is working on a M.A. in Theology at the St. Paul Seminary School of Divinity. He lives with his wife and children in South St. Paul, MN. His personal website is brantlymillegan.com.
And today we celebrate...