Springfield’s Catholic bishop says he is not surprised that Pope Benedict has decided to retire, although he is a little surprised at the timing. Benedict appointed Bishop Thomas John Paprocki to head up the Springfield diocese in 2010, and the bishop has met the pope on several occasions, most recently about a year ago.
Paprocki says even then, The Pope was noticeably frail. The bishop says it’s surprising that the Pope would announce his resignation right before Lent, but thinks the timing must have been deliberate.
