Huge crowd in St Peter's Square for Pope's last audience

A huge crowd gathered in St Peter's Square on Wednesday to bid goodbye to Pope Benedict the day before he becomes the first pontiff in some six centuries to step down.
The pope was to hold his last general audience, which usually takes place in an indoor auditorium but was moved outside into the sprawling square to accommodate more people.

"He did what he had to do in his conscience before God," said Sister Carmela, from a city north of Rome, who came to the capital with her fellow nuns and members of her parish.

Many in the crowd, which streamed into the square across the Tiber River and along nearby streets, held up banners thanking the pope and wishing him well. They came from all over Italy and abroad.

"This is a day in which we are called to trust in the Lord, a day of hope," said Sister Carmela. "There is no room for sadness here today. We have to pray, there are many problems in the Church but we have to trust in the Lord."

Some 50,000 people asked for the free tickets but the crowd was larger and many people had to stand at the back. No immediate crowd estimate was available.

"He was very humble to do this," said Carla Mantoni, 65, from a parish in Rome.

"I understand why he did this. It was clear from the start that he was more at home in a library. A very good man but he realised in his heart that this was the right thing to do for himself and the Church and now he will pray, he will pray for all of us," she said.

Despite the praise and sympathy for the pope from faithful in the square, many catholics were stunned by his decision and worry about the effect it will have on the future of a troubled Church.

The Vatican has said that Benedict, who will move to the papal summer residence south of Rome on Thursday night when the papacy becomes vacant, will assume the title of "pope emeritus" and be addressed as "your holiness".