Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Pope's last Mass will be on Ash Wednesday in St Peter's

Amid the buzz created by the Pope’s announcement that he will retire, it could be easy to miss the fact that his last Mass will be on Ash Wednesday and not in the normal location for the first day of Lent, reports the Catholic News Agency.

“It’s very clear that St Peter’s is a much bigger church than Santa Sabina in Aventino, so for a celebration in which we expect there will be a lot of faithful, bishops and cardinals who wish to be present to pray together with the Pope, St Peter’s Basilica was chosen spontaneously,” Father Federico Lombardi told CNA yesterday.

“It’s a natural motive of space and it’s also necessary to bear in mind that this will probably be the last big liturgical celebration, the last Mass, presided over by the Pope with the cardinals. So it’s normal that it occurs in his church, in St. Peter’s Basilica,” the Vatican spokesman said.