Carrie McClish and Michele Jurich
Staff writers

Asked at Sacred Heart Church and the Cathedral of Christ the Light, Oakland.


Ron Arth

Initially like everyone else, I was shocked to learn about what happened. It came as a complete surprise and it gives pause to all of us to think about Benedict as a man and what it means for all of us when we consider our futures as we grow older. He decided to approach this in a different way than many of the popes before him. He will be seen as someone who did something radically different and it took a lot of courage. I think he'll be looked on with a lot of love and respect and admiration for that decision.




Cecilia Harris

He said that he is resigning for his health. He is slowing down. A lot of these things were going on before he took office. I think he is doing the right thing.






Mary Ann Francis

He made a good decision (to resign when he did) instead of being sick and not being able to take care of himself and the church. I think he loves everybody enough to give up (the papacy). He is acknowledging that he can no longer do the job as he would like to do it. I admire him for what he did.




Norm Collins
From what I learned in the media (Pope Benedict) will be remembered as a teacher and for his clarity of thought and depth of his thought. With this action, to me, his decision to resign is an act of humility. It is almost unprecedented, certainly for 600 years.






Alan Yoc

The Year of Faith. It gives me a chance to better understand what being a Catholic is through learning more than I already know.






Virginia Marr

It's hard to determine. He was so steeped in the way things were before, different from Pope John, almost going backward. I appreciate his deep spirituality.

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