Among the more than 50,000 people in St. Peter’s Square Jan. 5 for the funeral of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI was Baltimore Archbishop William E. Lori, who said the subdued nature of the liturgy was at the request of the retired pontiff, the first to resign the papacy in more than 600 years.

The mood in St. Peter’s Square in the hours leading up to the historic funeral for Pope Benedict XVI was much more festive than somber.

Pope Benedict XVI was a renowned theologian, a “recognized authority,” who left “a rich legacy of studies and research on the fundamental truths of the faith,” said the official summary of his life and papacy.

Pope Benedict XVI “spread and testified to” the Gospel his entire life, Pope Francis told tens of thousands of people gathered Jan. 5 for his predecessor’s funeral Mass.

“I can tell you the shock was palpable,” Bishop Parker remembered. “After Pope Benedict left the room, having given us his blessing, the cardinals simply stood in stunned silence. No one knew what to say or what to do, or what would happen next, given that this hadn’t happened for so many centuries.”

The theological writings and papal teaching of the late Pope Benedict XVI were and will continue to be a blessing to the Catholic Church, Pope Francis wrote.

Pope Benedict XVI made substantial contributions to theology and Catholic thought through his prolific writing, academic lectures and long-form interviews, say scholars who study his work.

In a Q&A with OSV News, author Peter Seewald takes a look at the legacy of the German pope he studied and who, he said, “will be canonized some day.”

Pope Benedict XVI was a “great teacher of catechesis” whose “sharp and gentle thinking” led others to encounter Jesus, Pope Francis said.

By their lives, Mary and the late Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI helped people to seek and to see the face of God, Washington Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory said Dec. 31.