his predecessors, has the ability to address crowds in multiple languages? >> i think it becomes more and more necessary as these crowds come from different parts of the world. part of this getting a personal contact with a holy father. i mean, the man that is supposed to be our spiritual father. the more that the holy father can speak to you in your own language gives you a better and better and better sense of drawing closer knit to this family. already in that square, you see people from all over the world. then above it, you see saints from all over the world. so this giant community where the pope can speak to them in their individual languages and draw them all to that same single language of the faith. >> you see flags from all around the world. and whenever you're at an audience and the pope begins to speak in the language, there will always be a group of the faithful from that part of the world who will start cheering. >> as you mentioned, john paul ii changed the game with the language skill. now we take it for granted that

the pope should speak seven or eight languages. this man here, joseph ratzinger, is also an extraordinary linguist. we've become accustomed to it with john paul and with benedict. now it's pretty much expected of him. i think that's right what liz said about him, the father quality of the pope. that's a great advantage to have. >> and as you also look at him -- and he looks like an 85-year-old man, and you realize the stress that must have been on him, certainly in the run-up to this and the decision that he finally decided to make. but just the wear and tear of preparing. we know that yesterday he had something of a down day. there's packing to be done. there are papers to be gone through. there are decisions to be made. and he will be going to castel gandolfo, which is the summer residence of the pope, where he will stay until a more permanent residence is finished. they have been doing renovations on the old monastery on the

grounds of the vatican. he's someone, liz, who really -- it's not a job that he can go home at 5:00, and he puts his little time card in, and it ends. this is a man who for the last eight years, when most people would want to be retiring -- and, ghiin fact, he planned to retire with his brother to a little house in germany and live a life in prayer, has had the eight most stressful years of his life. >> i think it's important to remember that the papacy is -- it's a burden. he's looking right now, right in front of him,him, he has the -- elsik for these chosen men, they'll have to carry a burden. it e it's parenting to the highest degree. the papacy doesn't have a clock off time.

it doesn't a moment when the cares of the world. we tend to think of our own corner of the world. which he sees in front of him right now. they are on their shoulders. >> if you're just joining us here in the united states, we're watching the final public appearance for pope benedict xvi, this is his wednesday general audience. in winter, it will be held indoors. today it's outside. because about 200,000 of the faithful are packing st. peter's square, beyond the square and down there. he has made this decision to step down, in a context we have never seen in this church. there, we see the video from just a little bit earlier of the ride he made around the square. kissing babies. taking them out of the audience. smiling. waving to the crowd.

to cheers. there will soon to be two popes. one emeritus. both will be wearing white and both will be called pope. and both in a matter of months, will be living on the grounds of the vatican. it's also unprecedented, think we could say, that the pope is going to hear such ongoing discussions about his legacy and i'm wondering father, if you think, will this decision 50, 100 years from now, be what he's most remembered for. >> he's made a major contribution in so many years. undoubtedly history will see this as the most memorable thing about him. he'll have no difficulty disappearing, this is a very introverted man. he's a scholar.

this difficult job, john paul ii was lifted up by crowds like this. this pope does it very well. you can tell it drains him. he's probably much happier in his study, reading books and writing. let's listen. the pope is speaking now. >> -- brothers, authorities, dearest brothers and sisters, thank you for coming here to my last general audience. thank you from the bottom of my heart. i am deeply moved. and i see the church alive. we also must thank our lord because of the beautiful day that he gave us today. it doesn't even look like winter.

like paul the apostle in the passage we just heard, i also feel in my heart that i have to thank god, mostly, because he guides us and he allows the church to grow. he gives us his word and this feeds the faith of his people. right now, my soul is getting larger and it embraces the church all over the world and i thank god for the news that over the years of peter's ministers, i obtained on faith in jesus the lord and on charity within the body of the church. which lives in love and in hope. and this opens us to the -- our home in heaven. i want to hold everybody in

prayer. i welcome every meeting, every pastoral visit. i collect everything in prayer to give it to the lord and we have full knowledge of his will with a spiritual awareness and we can beheave in a way that's worthy of his love and so that we can have fruits in every good work that we do. right now, i have great faith and trust, because i know we all know that the truth of the gospel is the strength of the church. and the life of the church. the gospel purifies and renews us, it brings fruit everywhere, where the community of the faithful license to it and

welcomes the grace of god in truth and charity, this is my trust, this is my faith, this is my joy. when on april 19th of -- eight years ago, i accepted to take on peter's minister. i had the firm sincerite certaiy the life of the church in the word of god. at that time, as i said many times the words that resonated within my heart were lord, why do you ask me that? and what are you asking of me? and -- and i understood that what you're asking me is a lot, but if you ask me, i will accept it, based on your word, because i trust that you'll guide me even with my weaknesses.

eight years later, i can say that the lord did guide me. that he was close to me. i perceived day after day his presence. it was a path within the church, with moments of joy and light, but also moments that were not easy. i felt like st. peter's with the apostles on the boat in galilee, the lord gave us many days of sun and nice wind and days when fishing was abundant. also moments when the water was troubled. and the wind was against us. like throughout the history of the church, the lord seemed to be asleep, but i always knew that within that boat there was

the lord and i always knew that the boat of the church is not mine, it's not ours, it's his. the lord will never allow it for to sink. he's the one who leads it. also through the man he chooses because that's what he wanted. this was and is a certainty which nothing can ever change or blur. and it is, for this reason, that, today, i'm very thankful to god because he never took away from us to the church his consolation, his life, his love. this is the year of the faith,

which we wanted to strengthen our faith in god. in a context which seems to put him more and more on a second level. and we want to strengthen our faith in lord. and we want to rely upon him like children. we're certain that his arms will always support us and he'll allow us to walk day after day, also when we tired. i want for every one to feel love loved by god and showed us his love with no boundaries. i want for each and every one of us to feel the join of being a christian and a beautiful prayer that we recite every morning. i adore my god with all of my love and my heart. i thank you for creating me.

we are happy for the gift of the faith. this is the most gracious gift which nobody can take away from us. and let's thank the lord every day for this with prayer and the certain christian life. god loves us. but he wants us to love him back. it's not just god that i want to wish right now, pope is not alone in st. peter's boat even if it's his primary and first responsibility. i never felt alone. in carrying the joy and the weight of the st. peter's minister. the lord put next to me many

people with their generosity and love toward the church has always helped me and were close to me throughout. first of all, you may dear, brothers the cardinals, with your wisdom, with your couns counseli counseling, with your friendship, you were precious to me. from my secretary of state who accompanied me out of loyalty, throughout all of these years and roman curia, including all of the people in different sectors worked for the holy see, there's many faces that people don't know about. that work in the shadow and in silence. every day. our faith and humility and all of those people were always firm support. were always reliable to me. a special thought to the church of rome, my diocese.

i cannot forget the brothers and the bishops and all the consecrated people and the operation of god in pastoral visits and audiences and travels, i always felt a lot of after perfection and attention and i have felt close to each and every one of you with no distinctions. with true charity. which the heart of every shepherd must have and especially the bishop of rome. and every day, i brought each and every one of you in my prayer as a father would do. i would want for my good-bye and

my thanks can reach everybody, the heart of the pope reaches the entire world and i wish to express my gratitude to the diplomatic body in the holy see. the great family of nations and i also think all of those that allow good communications and i really thank them for their importance service. at this stage, i also want to thank from the bottom of my heart, all of the people all over the world, so numerous, who over the past two weeks, sent me messages of friendship, of pray prayer. yes, the pope is never alone. and now, i feel it once again it in such a great way and this touches my heart.

the pope belongs to everyone and lot of people feel very close to him. it is true i received letters from all of the great in the world, religious leaders, head of states b you i also received letters from simple people who write me, out of their heart and they make their after perfection felt to me and their after perfection comes from the love of jesus in love. to a great person, they write to me as brothers and sisters. as sons and daughters, with the feeling of a family connection. here, you feel directly what the

church is. an organization for religious means of course but it's a live body. a community of brothers and sisters within the body of jesus christ that unites us all. it allows us to touch with our hands the strength of his truth and of his love. and at a time where everybody talks of his decline, we can see that the church is alive today. over the last few months, i perceived that my strength was declining and i have asked god with assistance in my prayers to

enlighten with his light to allow me to make the best decision, not for my own good but the good of the church. i took the step. in the faull awareness of its gravity and novelty. but very sincere in spirit, loving the church also means have the courage to make divot choices, hard choices, bear in mind the good of the church and not oneself. please allow me to go back to the 2005 -- the gravity of the decision was also in the fact

that starting from that moment, i was committed forever to the lord. and taking on peter's minister. no longer has any privacy, those who do belong to everybody, to the whole church, and the person's life, so to speak, no longer has a private dimension. i could experience and i experienced that now, that one receives life when they donate life. and a lot of people who love god also love the successor of st. peter and feel affection for him. the pope feels safe in the embrace of your communion. because he no longer belongs to himse himself.

he now belongs to everybody and everybody belongs to him. it is forever. there is no way to go back to a private life. my decision to give up the active ministry does not revoke this. one does not go back to private life. or life of travels of meetings and nobody walks off the cross. but, i will stay next to the lord on the cross in a different, new way. i no longer will have the power for the government of the church but in the service of prayer, i

will stay within st. peter's domain. the lord showed us the way for a life that passive or active always belongs to god. i also thank everybody for their respect and their understanding with which you welcomed my decision, which was so important. i will continue to accompany the path of the church with prayer with reflection and with the dedication to the lord in which i always strived to live every day up until now. i hope to continue to act this way and i ask you to pray for the cardinals. pray for the cardinals. that you love and who are called

to such an important task. the choice of the successor of peter. may the lord accompany them with light and strength of spirit. and i ask the help of the virgin mary, the mother of the church, so that she accompany each and every one of us and the entire church community, so we trust in her and rely on her with faith. dear friends, god leads his church. also, especially in the difficult moments, let's never forget this vision of faith, which is the only true way of seeing the path of the church in our heart. in the heart of each and every one of us, there must be the joy of certainty that the lord is next to us. he never abandons us.

and today with his love, i say thank you. le

. an enthusiastic outpouring of affection and gratitude for the leader of the roman catholic church, pope benedict xvi. he gave his final message. it was a deeply personal one, more personal than i would have expected. it was pastoral, it was loving and humbling. it was also at times moving. when he talked about the great responsibility that he felt eight years ago when he was elected. the request that he made of god

to trust him, to guide him, even in his weaknesses, he said. and it was also in its christian message, also, very interesting and perhaps surprising, because this pope, who is known as a searing intellect, used as the focus of his final message the most simple message of the church which is love the joy of being a christian. father, your thoughts? >> there's a direct line, i think, as i listened to that talk, between the pope kissing babies on the way in, but we all commented the pope as papa. i heard during this final talk, all of those overtones -- >> and the shouts that we heard from the crowd. >> right. not just a title, that's great significance. he's father of the church. i have the title of father, which i love.

i'm a spiritual father. he's the papa of the whole church. i heard that over and over again. i loved when he said, people write to him as children writing to a father. that was a wonderful witness to the theology of the papacy and the power that it has. he's the father of the church. >> the pope is now addressing the crowd in several languages. it's a much shorter version in what we just heard. at some point, she'll a brief message in english. down in the crowd is the faithful, claudia, our nbc producer in rome, tell us what it's like on the ground there, claudia? >> well, chris, we are seriously witnessing a historic moment. i have rarely seen anything like it in st. peter's square, it looks like a stadium down there,

flags waving, chance and prolonged screams. the day couldn't start better. it's a beautiful, sunny day here. at 10:30, the pope arrived in his trademark popemobile and took a longer than usual drive around this square to welcome the thousands of pilgrims who came bid farewell to the pope in 600 years decided to abdicate. 50,000 hold tickets. but sources telling me it could be as many as quarter of a million people down here. let me tell you, i'm looking out at the long road that links to vatican to rome, it's packed with people, so that number may well be correct. the pope, as you heard, in his speech, he thanked everybody and

the people here in rome are thanking him back. as you can see from this headline, on the biggest catholic newspaper in rome, thank you, benedict. this shows you most catholics, at least in italy, have understood his decision to abdicate and agree that was the right choice for the good of the church. chris? >> claudio, thank you very much. he talked in his address about the decision that he made. he asked god to help make the decision. clearly, he acknowledged that his strength was waning. and he also said that he understood the gravity of the decision that he was about to make but he did it with a profound spirit. people who are through there in rome and who have been around the pope in the last few weeks since he made this decision,