The former pope Benedict XVI, the first pontiff in 600 years to resign instead of ruling for life, is seriously ill, a German newspaper has reported.
The newspaper, Passauer Neue Presse, cited Benedict’s biographer, the German author Peter Seewald, who met the 93-year-old emeritus pope at the Vatican on Saturday.
A Vatican spokesperson did not comment on the report and the former pope’s personal secretary, the archbishop Georg Gänswein, did not immediately return a call asking for comment.
Seewald said Benedict, who has been in poor health for some time, was now suffering from shingles, a viral infection that causes painful rashes and is common among older people. » | Reuters | Monday, August 3, 2020
