Pope Benedict XVI’s stunning announcement Monday that he plans to resign after almost eight years as pontiff brought renewed attention to the sex abuse litigation and related legal maneuverings that have roiled the Roman Catholic Church over the course of the past decade.
In voluntarily stepping down as head of the Holy See, the 85-year-old, German-born Benedict becomes the first pope to make such a move since Gregory XII in 1415. Upon relinquishing the Catholic Church’s highest office, Benedict will revert to his former title, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.
