Well Said: Pope Benedict is like the "grandfather of all grandfathers"

Retired pontiff Benedict XVI joined some 50,000 pilgrims in Saint Peter’s Square on Sunday, Sept. 28 for a meeting between Pope Francis and elderly people from around the world.

Welcoming his predecessor, the Holy Father described Pope Benedict as the “grandfather of all grandfathers.”

“I have said many times that it gives me great pleasure that he lives here in the Vatican, because it is like having a wise grandfather at home. Thank you!”

Catholic News Agency, via The Deacon's Bench

I love the idea of Pope Francis bumping into Benedict XVI in the garden in the evenings and the two of them exchanging a few words about whatever is on the Pope's mind at the time. For some reason that possibility just never occurred to me. It sounds very companionable and comfortable.