Pope Benedict XVI's decision to resign is fueling an unusual discussion within the Vatican: What status he'll hold once he retires? Stacy Meichtry reports on The News Hub. Photo: Getty Images. 
 
 VATICAN CITY—The looming retirement of Pope Benedict XVI, who will soon become the first living ex-pontiff in some six centuries, has created a quandary for the Roman Catholic Church: What to make of a former pope who will continue to live under the roof of a new one? 
 
 Wednesday provided two examples of how the former officeholder could cast a shadow over his successor's work. Pope Benedict was likely to take the sensitive step of appointing a new chief of the Vatican bank, Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi said—a move that would leave the next pontiff with a just-picked custodian to a secretive bank that, under Pope Benedict, has denied allegations of money-laundering. 
 
 Pope Benedict also made his first public appearances in the wake of his resignation announcement, issuing a strong warning to the cardinals who will elect his successor, decrying the internal rivalries among senior churchmen that have plagued his eight-year papacy. 
 
 "The face of the church is at times disfigured by the sins against the unity of the church and the divisions of the ecclesial body," said Pope Benedict, presiding over Ash Wednesday celebrations from the pulpit of St. Peter's Basilica. 
 
 Some analysts have questioned whether the pope, who has made plans to live inside the Vatican and near the papal court after he steps down on Feb. 28, risks becoming a rival to his successor, if unwittingly. 
 
 The pope's Ash Wednesday homily underscored the persistent infighting in church ranks. The rivalries burst into public view a year ago when the Vatican confirmed the authenticity of letters to the pope, leaked to the Italian media, detailing the ouster of a top Vatican official who tried to blow the whistle on wasteful spending in the world's smallest state. 
 
 The pope has made clear that he has no intention of interfering with his successor's work. 
 
 The exiting pope will give up all the formal powers of his office, from the exclusive right to appoint bishops to the authority to issue infallible teachings, said Father Lombardi, the spokesman. The ring that bears the seal of his office will be smashed, paving the way for his successor to ascend the chair of Saint Peter. 
 
 Enlarge Image Close Reuters Pope Benedict XVI, appearing in public for the first time since announcing his resignation, leads his Wednesday general audience at the Vatican. 
 
 But the former pontiff will continue to live inside Vatican City, where he will write and pray, according to Vatican officials. He will remain one of Roman Catholicism's leading theologians, an intellectual status that analysts and church officials say carries enormous weight for an institution that acts as a bridge to the divine. 
 
 Once the pope steps down, he will be whisked by helicopter to Castel Gandolfo, the papal summer residence on Rome's outskirts, while the Vatican puts the finishing touches on his future home: A onetime convent within Vatican walls that was recently renovated under the orders of the pope himself. 
 
 "I think it was a mistake for him to announce that he will be living inside the Vatican," said Rev. Thomas J. Reese, senior fellow at the Woodstock Theological Center at Georgetown University. "The Vatican belongs to the new pope, and [Pope Benedict XVI] needs the pope's permission to live there." 
 
 Father Lombardi said he didn't think the pope consulted the College of Cardinals on his decision to stay inside the Vatican. 
 
 Added a senior papal adviser: "It's better to have him here than somewhere else, where he could become another center of power." 
 
 Every detail of the pope's retirement—his title, his writings, the color of his vestments—will have ramifications in the life of the church, Vatican officials say. A key issue, according to the senior papal adviser, will be whether the retired pontiff holds audiences, even private ones, with potential admirers. 
 
 "Right now, we don't know what title we should use to address Benedict XVI once he renounces," Father Lombardi said. "It's a consideration that's not only formal. There are juridical aspects that we must take into consideration," he said, adding that the pope himself was reflecting on the matter. 
 
 By church law, the pope will remain a bishop when he steps down, according to Rev. Davide Cito, a Vatican adviser and professor of canonical law at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome. 
 
 "Anything he says or writes will be examined by the media to see if it conflicts with anything the new pope says," Father Reese said. "It would not be healthy for the church to hear, 'The new pope says this, but Pope Benedict says that.' " 
 
 The pope intends to keep a very low profile, according to Greg Burke, a top Vatican communications official. "You don't want to have a situation where you have dueling popes. Benedict certainly knows that." 
 
 In the 13th century, Pope Celestine V resigned under pressure and was imprisoned by his successor, who feared the previous pope could become a rival, said Father Cito. Celestine V, a hermit who founded the religious order that bears his name, was later canonized. 
 
 By publicly saying the resignation is his own choice, Father Cito added, Pope Benedict has dispelled fears of a rivalry. 
 
 The pope underscored that Wednesday. "I have done this in full freedom for the good of the church," he told a general audience, one of his last. 
 
 Later at Mass, the pontiff received a long and emotional ovation from the hundreds of rank-and-file faithful who packed the pews, including dozens of cardinals who removed their miters in a sign of respect to the outgoing pontiff. One cleric wiped away tears. 
 
 The voice of Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican's No. 2, wavered as he responded to the pontiff: "We wouldn't be sincere, Your Holiness, if we didn't say tonight there's a veil of sadness over our hearts." 
 
 Write to Stacy Meichtry at stacy.meichtry@wsj.com 
 
 A version of this article appeared February 14, 2013, on page A10 in the U.S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: Church Puzzles Over Role of Ex-Pope. ||||| Pope Benedict XVI attends Ash Wednesday mass at the Vatican February 13, 2013. Thousands of people are expected to gather in the Vatican for Pope Benedict's Ash Wednesday mass, which is expected to be his last before leaving office at the end of February. 
 
 VATICAN CITY Pope Benedict will see out his life in prayer, "hidden from the world", he said on Thursday in his first personal comment on his plans since he stunned Roman Catholics by announcing his retirement. 
 
 His remarks, in a voice that was hoarse at times, followed Monday's resignation notice which spoke of "a life dedicated to prayer"; the Vatican has said the 85-year-old German will live within its walls. His seclusion may allay concern that the first living former pope in centuries might trouble Church unity. 
 
 Speaking unscripted to thousands of priests from the diocese of Rome, in what turned out to be a farewell address in his capacity as bishop of the Italian capital, Benedict outlined a cloistered life ahead, once he steps down in two weeks time: 
 
 "Even if I am withdrawing into prayer, I will always be close to all of you and I am sure that you will be close to me, even if I remain hidden to the world," he said. 
 
 After February 28, when he becomes the first pontiff in hundreds of years to resign instead of ruling for life, Benedict will first go to the papal summer retreat at Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome, and then move permanently into the four-storey Mater Ecclesiae convent, in the gardens behind St. Peter's Basilica. 
 
 The Vatican has already said that he will not influence the election of his successor, which will take place in a secret conclave to start between March 15 and 20 in the Sistine Chapel. 
 
 But his unprepared comments to his priests at the emotional meeting in the Vatican's modern audience hall was the first time the pope had spoken specifically in public about how he will spend his time after his resignation. 
 
 The Vatican, which is navigating uncharted waters since his shock announcement, said experts have still not decided what his title will be or whether he will wear the white of a pope, the red of a cardinal or the black of an ordinary priest. 
 
 "In my opinion, once he resigns he should put aside the white cassock and put on the robes of a cardinal," said Father Thomas Reese, senior fellow at the Woodstock Theological Center at Georgetown University and an author of books on the Vatican. 
 
 "He should no longer be called pope, or Benedict, or your Holiness, but should be referred to as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger," Reese added. "After the new pope is elected, he should attend his installation along with the other retired cardinals and pledge his allegiance to the new pope." 
 
 Thursday's meeting with priests was the latest event in what has become a slow-motion, long goodbye to the man who has led the 1.2 billion-strong Roman Catholic Church for eight years. 
 
 On Wednesday night, he presided at an Ash Wednesday Mass that was moved to the vast St Peter's Basilica from its original venue in Rome. 
 
 A capacity crowd gave him a thunderous standing ovation at his last public Mass. In his homily he said the Church had been at times "defaced" by scandals, divisions and rivalries. 
 
 "Thank you. Now, let's return to prayer," the pontiff said, bringing an end to several minutes of applause that clearly moved him. In an unusual gesture, bishops took off their mitres in a sign of respect. Some of them wept. 
 
 One of the priests at the altar, which according to tradition rests above the tomb of St. Peter, took out a handkerchief to dry his tears. 
 
 SCANDAL, DIVISIONS AND RIVALRIES 
 
 The Wednesday night homily appeared to be one of his last testaments to a Church has been shaken by scandals around the world and closer to home. 
 
 Benedict's papacy was rocked by crises over the sexual abuse of children by priests in Europe and the United States, most of which preceded his time in office but came to light during it. 
 
 His reign also saw Muslim anger after he compared Islam with violence. Jews were upset over the rehabilitation of a Holocaust denier. During a scandal over the Church's business dealings, his butler was accused of leaking his private papers. 
 
 The Vatican said 117 cardinals will be eligible to enter the March conclave to choose Benedict's successor. Cardinals lose their right to elect a new pope if they turn 80 before the See of St. Peter becomes vacant, as it will on February 28. 
 
 Benedict's message to his flock since his announcement has been that the Church is bigger than any human being, including the pope, and will not be hurt by his resignation for health reasons. 
 
 He said on Wednesday he was sustained by the "certainty that the Church belongs to Christ, who will never stop guiding it and caring for it" and suggested that the faithful should also feel comforted by this. 
 
 Cardinals around the world have already begun informal consultations by phone and email to construct a profile of the man they think would be best suited to lead the Church in a period of continuing crisis. 
 
 The conservative Benedict has appointed more than half of the cardinals who will elect his successor so it is unlikely the new man will tamper with any teachings such as the ban on artificial birth control or women priests. 
 
 But many in the Church have been calling for the election of someone who they say will be a better listener to other opinions within the Church. 
 
 The likelihood that the next pope would be a younger man and perhaps a non-Italian, was increasing, particularly because of the many mishaps caused by Benedict's mostly Italian top aides. 
 
 (Editing by Alastair Macdonald)
– What do you do with an ex-pope? If you happen to know, call Rome, because the Church isn't sure yet. Many fear Benedict will become an implicit rival to the new pope, despite his apparent desire to keep a low profile. He told Roman diocese priests yesterday that he would be "withdrawing into prayer," Reuters reports. "I will always be close to all of you," he said, "even if I remain hidden from the world." The "close to you" bit is somewhat literal; Benedict has announced he'll be living in the Vatican. That's caused some controversy, the Wall Street Journal reports, but one senior papal adviser says it's "better to have him here than somewhere else, where he could become another center of power." Benedict is likely to exert influence over the next pope by picking a new head of the embattled Vatican Bank, and he'll keep writing as a respected theologian. The Church also hasn't decided what vestments he'll wear, whether he'll give audiences, or even what to address him as—a decision that has "juridical" ramifications, a spokesman said. One thing's for sure: He won't be infallible anymore.