Pope Benedict resigned and left Vatican City Officially

As the sun set on Rome and on his turbulent eight-year papacy, Pope Benedict XVI, a shy theologian who never seemed entirely at home in the limelight, was whisked by helicopter into retirement on Thursday. At 5 p.m. CET (11 a.m. EST), Pope Benedict XVI left the Vatican on a helicopter to the papal seaside retreat, Castel Gandolfo. Once he arrived at the castle, he greeted the crowd at 5:30 p.m. CET. AP has this transcript of the Pope's final words:

Dear friends, I'm happy to be with you, surrounded by the beauty of creation and your well-wishes which do me such good. Thank you for your friendship, and your affection. You know this day is different for me than the preceding ones: I am no longer the Supreme Pontiff of the Catholic Church, or I will be until 8 o'clock this evening and then no more.I am simply a pilgrim beginning the last leg of his pilgrimage on this Earth. But I would still ... thank you ... I would still with my heart, with my love, with my prayers, with my reflection, and with all my inner strength, like to work for the common good and the good of the church and of humanity. I feel very supported by your sympathy. Let us go forward with the Lord for the good of the church and the world. Thank you, I now wholeheartedly impart my blessing. Blessed be God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Good night! Thank you all!"

Pope Benedict XVI

But while Benedict, 85, retires to a life of prayer, study, walks in the garden and piano practice, he leaves in his wake a Vatican hierarchy facing scandals and intrigue that are casting a shadow over the cardinals entrusted with electing his successor in a conclave this month. Even as he met with the cardinals on his final day as pope, pledging "unconditional reverence and obedience" to his successor and urging the cardinals to "work like an orchestra" harmonizing for the good of the church, the discord was apparent.

In his final blessing to the faithful, who gathered outside the papal summer residence in Castel Gandolfo where he will live for several months, Benedict appeared tired, and even relieved, saying that from now on

"I am simply a pilgrim beginning the last leg of his pilgrimage on this earth."

His towering predecessor, John Paul II, wasted away with Parkinson's disease; Benedict, whose life's work was aimed at reconciling faith and reason, opted for a short farewell.

"Good night, and thank you," he said in Italian to the boisterous but small crowds at Castel Gandolfo, just over two weeks after he shocked the world on Feb. 11 by announcing his retirement, the first in the modern history of the church.

Earlier, thousands of people stood in a hushed St. Peter's Square, forming half-moon crowds around giant video screens showing the pope's departure as sea gulls wheeled in the waning light. Many looked up and waved as his helicopter circled the square. "Viva il Papa!" several shouted. One banner read simply "Danke!!!"

Katie Martin, 29, an aspiring firefighter from Manhattan Beach, Calif., said she delayed her visit to Rome by a week to witness the historic event. "I love my faith," she said. "I love my church. I have a great love for the Holy Father."

Like many, Ms. Martin said she was sad to see Benedict's papacy end. "But I'm also really excited to see what's next," she said.

Pope Benedict XVI

In many ways, Benedict never seemed to fit into his red shoes. He seemed uninterested in the spectacle of power, awkward even raising his arms to greet crowds, forever disappointing photographers. On a 2009 visit to the Holy Land, he did not stop at the muddy pool in the Jordan River where Jesus is believed to have been baptized, passing by on a golf cart instead.

His critics say that on his watch, the Vatican suffered a profound crisis of governance. On Thursday, Panorama magazine reported that the Vatican Secretariat of State had ordered wiretaps on the phones of several Vatican prelates as part of an investigation into the scandal in which confidential documents were leaked to the news media and the author of a tell-all book.

Pope Benedict XVI resigned and left Vatican City for the last time Thursday. He will return — not as Pope Benedict XVI, but as pope emeritus — a retired man. Hours later, Benedict became the first pope in about 600 years to retire. He emerged late in the afternoon from the Apostolic Palace, walking with the help of a cane, for a short car ride to a waiting helicopter that would fly him into the next chapter of his life.

The Pope left the Vatican in a motorcade before boarding a helicopter to the papal retreat

Pope Benedict XVI has left the Vatican on his final day as Pope, saying he "will simply be a pilgrim" starting his last journey on earth.

He resigned officially and became the first pope who resigned in last 600 years.
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