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Pope Benedict XVI formally installed
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-04-24 20:43
Pope Benedict XVI was formally installed in a high-profile ceremony in the
St. Peter's Square in the Vatican Sunday to officially start the ministry of the
265th leader of the Roman Catholic Church.
Pope Benedict XVI
sits with cardinals during his inaugural mass in St. Peter's Square in the
Vatican April 24. [Reuters] | The open-air
ceremony, known as Ceremony of Investiture, included an inaugural Mass to
provide the new pope a major platform to set the tone for his pontificate.
Attending the ceremony were an estimated 350,000 people, including a large
number of pilgrims from the new pope's native Germany, political leaders and
ceremonial dignitaries.
The 78-year-old Benedict XVI was elected the 265th pope on April 19, 11 days
after the death of Pope John Paul II on April 8.
The new pope began the ceremony by processing into the area under St. Peter's
Basilica where St. Peter is believed to be buried.
In a symbolic moment of the inaugural Mass, Benedict was given a Fisherman's
Ring and a woolen pallium or shawl -- symbols of the papal authority.
Benedict ended the inaugural Mass by riding in a white open-topped white jeep
surrounded by plain-clothed guards.
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