Pope Benedict is still alive, but the death rumors circulated on the internet have worried his followers.
A retired prelated Pope Benedict, who has served the Catholic church as its head, has suddenly come to the public’s attention with the words on the street.
He also has a record of working in the Vatican city-state as its sovereign for around eight years. After beginning his position in 2005, he resigned in 2013, and upon resignation, he chose the title of “pope emeritus.”
Over the years, people have respected him, followed him, and found him as their motivation in life. Thus, the sudden death rumors on the former prelated just devastated the people to the core.
Read More: Who Is Father Adam Kotas? Wikipedia Biografia And Age Of The Padre
Is Pope Benedict Still Alive?
Yes, Pope Benedict is still alive. The rumors circulating over his passing away turned out to be a hoax, as mentioned by BNO News.
The rumors circulated with South American news outlets sharing that the respectable Pope lost his life on Tuesday morning. Soon it went viral over the Twitter platform after fake user Georg Batzing tweeted about his death.
The death information was confusing for the people over the platform, who started worrying about the former prelate. It was not verified, and on top of that, the National Catholic Reporter’s journalist claimed it to be fake.
Benedict was born on 16 April 1927 in Marktl, Bavaria, Weimar Republic. He got recognized as the longest-lived person to have held the pope office on 4 September 2020.
At present, he is 95 years of age and living his life to the finest. He holds German nationality and is the residence of Mater Ecclesiae Monastery, Vatican City.
Nevertheless, coming back to his death hoax, many news outlets have apologized for sharing the false information.
Death Cause And Obituary Rumors On Pope Benedict
Although Pope Benedict’s death swirls around the internet within a couple of seconds, there was no information on his death cause or obituary. What’s more, the claim itself is false and shared by an Italian journalist.
Many followers who started believing the hoax began sending their condolences and wishing his soul to rest. The public was devastated to hear about the unverified announcement that took over the web.
Many users over the internet have shown their rage, and some have found it fortunate after finding out the truth.
Moreover, a Catholic Journalist Alejandro Bermudez tweeted, “#BREAKING: Reports announcing the death of Pope Benedict XVI are #fakenews.” He then shared the tweet of CNA Deutsch that revealed the fake Twitter account.
Does Pope Benedict Have A Wife And Children?
Pope Benedict doesn’t seem to have a wife or children. However, he previously fell into controversy after talking about the priestly celibacy rules.
Although retired in 2013, he mentioned not remaining silent on the issue of “allowing married men to be ordained as priests” over the Amazon region. He appeared in a book that Cardinal Robert Sarah co-authored.
At that time, he stated the Church’s centuries-old tradition has “great significance” for the priests to focus on their duties.