The world went nearly 600 years without a pope resigning before a frail Benedict XVI stepped down in 2009. The Vatican rumor mill is now working overtime on whether the next wait won’t be so lengthy.
Rumors swirled in Rome on Monday that an ailing Pope Francis, age 85, is considering stepping down, a move that would make him the second consecutive leader of the world’s 1.2 billion Roman Catholics to leave office while still alive. The Argentine-born pontiff has been forced to cancel long-planned trips and some say his agenda for the coming years offers signs he is contemplating following Benedict’s example.