Former Pope Benedict XVI dies at age 95

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI has died. He was 95.

In 2013, Benedict became the first pope in nearly 600 years to resign from his role as the head of the Catholic Church, a decision he made because of his advancing age and deteriorating health at that time.

Following his retirement, Benedict lived in a former convent in Vatican City, a rare moment in history where two popes resided in the city at the same time. He lived mostly out of the public eye, promising after his resignation to remain “hidden from the world.”

This year, a German report on the Catholic Church alleged Benedict failed to act in four sexual abuse cases while he was pope.

The former pope wrote in a letter following the report that he “had great responsibilities in the Catholic Church. All the greater is my pain for the abuses and the errors that occurred in those different places during the time of my mandate.”

Some sexual abuse victims argued the letter did not go far enough, or offer an apology.