SPC reacts to Benedict XVI resignation

Source: Tanjug

BELGRADE -- With his act of voluntary resignation, which is worth of respect, Pope Benedict XVI has demonstrated "consistency and high standards".

(Beta/AP, file)

This was said in a statement released by the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC).
"The age of Pope Benedict XVI is an age of deep crisis and controversy in the Roman Catholic Church. Time and the judgment of history will show whether he is an extremely controversial pope, as many in his church and particularly in his homeland believed, or a man who tried to preserve the churchism from the impacts of secularization, as claimed by others," it was published on the SPC's website.

However, even the fiercest critics do not question his theological competence and spiritual integrity, the statement reads.

Pope Benedict XVI announced Monday that he will leave office on February 28.

He is the first pope to step down after 600 years.

The Roman Catholic Apostolic Nunciature to Serbia has confirmed that Pope Benedict XVI announced his decision to step down next month during his regular meeting with the cardinals on Monday, and said the move shows his courage in trying to do what is best for the Catholic Church.

"Once again, he showed the clarity, courage, humility and evangelical position of Peter's heir, guided by the Holy Spirit and the desire to act in the highest interest of the Church," the Apostolic Nunciature in Belgrade said in a release.

The Catholic Church received the news with the deepest emotions and disbelief, and the Pope's words require no comment, reads the release.