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April 10th, 2013 
Peter Nolan
Vatican insiders said her claim that Benedict had deteriorated sharply in the
last 15 days was overly “alarmist”, but conceded that in the last
few months he had become weaker.
Benedict cited his dwindling physical and mental fortitude as the reason for
his resignation, when he announced on Feb 11 that he intended to step down.
“Anyone who has watched the Pope over the last few months has seen that
he has deteriorated,” said one senior insider with knowledge of
Benedict’s health.
“At his final public appearances, it was evident that he was having
difficulty walking. He started using a cane about a year ago. The overall
decline has been steady, there’s no doubt about it.”
Last month it emerged that Benedict had a pacemaker fitted about a decade ago,
and a replacement installed less than three months before the announcement
of his resignation.
His eyesight is said to be failing and he has appeared increasingly stooped in
posture.
For months before his historic decision to resign, Benedict had dropped hints
that he no longer felt up to the job.
Last summer Peter Seewald, a German Catholic journalist who wrote a 2010 book
on Benedict based on extensive interviews with him, asked him what people
could expect of the rest of his papacy.
He replied: “From me? Not much more. I’m an old man and my strength is
diminishing. And I think what I have done is enough.”
In the 2010 book, Light of the World, Benedict prepared the way for his shock
decision.
“If a Pope clearly realises that he is no longer physically,
psychologically and spiritually capable of handling the duties of his
office, then he has a right, and under some circumstances, also an
obligation to resign,” he said.
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