BREAKING
Incumbent B.C. Premier David Eby鈥檚 NDP appears poised to win the province鈥檚 nail-biting 2024 election 鈥 and could potentially retain the party鈥檚 majority, by the narrowest of margins.
Tributes were paid Sunday on the first anniversary of the death of Pope Benedict XVI, with Pope Francis praising his love and wisdom and Benedict's private secretary expressing hope he might one day be declared a saint.
Benedict, the first pope to retire in six centuries, died last Dec. 31 at the age of 95 in the Vatican monastery where he spent 10 years as a pope emeritus. He is buried in the grottoes underneath St. Peter's Basilica.
Speaking at the end of his weekly noon blessing, Francis said the faithful feel "so much love, so much gratitude, so much admiration" for Benedict. He praised the "love and wisdom" with which Benedict guided the church and asked for a round of applause from the pilgrims and tourists gathered in St. Peter's Square.
Earlier in the day, Benedict's longtime secretary, Archbishop Georg Gaenswein, celebrated a special Mass in the basilica and then participated in an anniversary event to reflect on Benedict's legacy.
Speaking on the sidelines, Gaenswein acknowledged some of the polemics that surrounded Benedict's decade-long retirement alongside Francis in the Vatican, but said they would be forgotten in favor of the substance of his ministry and his final words: "Lord, I love you."
History, Gaenswein said, would judge Benedict as a "great theologian, a very simple person and a man of deep faith."
Francis frequently praised Benedict's decision to retire as courageous and said he, too, might follow in his footsteps. But now that Benedict has died, Francis has reaffirmed the papacy is generally a job for life, and a consensus has emerged that the unprecedented reality of having two popes living side by side in the Vatican created problems that must be addressed before any future pope decides to step down.
Benedict, a noted conservative theologian who spent a quarter-century as the Vatican's doctrine chief, remained a point of reference for conservatives and traditionalists, who have only increased their criticism of Francis in the year since he died. Francis, for his part, has appeared now to feel more free to impose his progressive vision of a reformed church now he is no longer under Benedict's shadow.
Gaenswein, whom Francis exiled to his native Germany soon after the death, recalled that Benedict had only expected to live a few months, maybe a year, after his 2013 resignation. Despite his longer-than-expected retirement, Benedict stayed true to his pledge to pray for the church and for his successor, he said.
"I pray that he will be a saint," Gaenswein said. "I wish he would be a saint, and I'm convinced he will be a saint."
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni also praised Benedict as "a great man of history and a giant of reason, faith and the positive synthesis between the two." In a statement, she said his spiritual and intellectual legacy would live on even among nonbelievers because of its "profound civic value" and ability to speak to people's minds and hearts.
Incumbent B.C. Premier David Eby鈥檚 NDP appears poised to win the province鈥檚 nail-biting 2024 election 鈥 and could potentially retain the party鈥檚 majority, by the narrowest of margins.
A group of Cape Breton firefighters are apologizing after four people showed up at a Halloween dance dressed in what appeared to be Ku Klux Klan costumes.
Several Liberal MPs are calling for a secret ballot vote on Justin Trudeau's leadership after he made clear he isn't going anywhere in spite of the calls from within his caucus to step down.
Prince William has opened up about how a powerful childhood experience with his brother and late mother helped shape his work in combatting homelessness.
Here's how retirees will get their funds from the federal benefit.
Marred by several delays, the trial of alleged human traffickers Lauriston and Amber Maloney finally got underway on Monday in a Bradford courtroom, with a woman who worked and lived with the couple testifying.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission has granted Google a five-year exemption from the Online News Act, ordering it to pay $100 million to Canadian news outlets within 60 days.
A recall has been issued for gummy candies due to pieces of wood, according to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
An actor known for his roles in the television comedies 鈥淏ob's Burgers鈥 and 鈥淎rrested Development鈥 was sentenced on Monday to one year in prison for his part in a mob's attack on the U.S. Capitol nearly four years ago.
Epcor says it has removed more than 20,000 goldfish from an Edmonton stormwater pond.
Witches and warlocks have been flocking to New Brunswick waterways this month, as a new Halloween tradition ripples across the province.
New Brunswicker Jillea Godin鈥檚 elaborate cosplay pieces attract thousands to her online accounts, as well as requests from celebrities for their own pieces.
A new resident at a Manitoba animal rescue has waddled her way into people's hearts.
Hundreds of people ran to the music of German composer and pianist Beethoven Wednesday night in a unique race in Halifax.
He is a familiar face to residents of a neighbourhood just west of Roncesvalles Avenue.
A meteor lit up our region's sky last night 鈥 with a large fireball shooting across the horizon over Lake Erie at around 7:00 p.m.
Residents of Ottawa's Rideauview neighbourhood say an aggressive wild turkey has become a problem.
A man who lost his life while trying to rescue people from floodwaters, and a 13-year-old boy who saved his family from a dog attack, are among the Nova Scotians who received a medal for bravery Tuesday.