Quote of the Day

After the "Vice-Pope" Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone SDB wished B16 a Happy Third Anniversary of his pontificate at the close of yesterday morning's St Pat's Mass, the pontiff a spontaneous word of thanks -- or, as he originally put it, "grace":

At this moment I can only thank you for your love of the Church and Our Lord, and for the love which you show to the poor Successor of Saint Peter. I will try to do all that is possible to be a worthy successor of the great Apostle, who also was a man with faults and sins, but remained in the end the rock for the Church. And so I too, with all my spiritual poverty, can be for this time, in virtue of the Lord’s grace, the Successor of Peter.

It is also your prayers and your love which give me the certainty that the Lord will help me in this my ministry. I am therefore deeply grateful for your love and for your prayers. My response now for all that you have given to me during this visit is my blessing, which I impart to you at the conclusion of this beautiful Celebration.

In other spontaneous Popetalks from yesterday, from the Cardinal's Studio at 452 Madison, Benedict recorded a greeting for Sirius Satellite Radio's Catholic Channel; audio of the message available on the channel's website... and for this final day of the trip, it isn't too late to sample the satellite provider's extraordinary PopeTrip coverage with the free three-day pass.

PHOTO: Reuters

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