2023 was a historic year. From the first time in history a Vatican prosecutor proposed maximum sentencing for a cardinal to the funeral Mass of Pope Benedict XVI, these are the 10 most viewed stories of the year.
#10
The Pope met with students of liturgy and warned them against turning their homilies into philosophy lectures.
POPE FRANCIS
Your words should be simple. Words that everyone can understand. Don't give long homilies. Your homilies should not be boring. Your homilies should reach people's hearts, because they come from your heart.
#9
As is tradition, Pope Francis washed the feet of twelve inmates at a juvenille prison in Rome to mark Holy Thursday.
#8
At the third edition of the Italian States General of Birth Rate, the Pope expressed regret that some people put their dogs above the needs of people. He recalled a moment where he scolded a woman who asked him to bless her dog.
POPE FRANCIS
A little dog. Then, I had no patience and scolded the lady: Madam, so many children are hungry and you with your little dog.
#7
In the funeral Mass in honor of Australian Cardinal, George Pell, Pope Francis and other cardinals expressed their final goodbyes to the leading figure in the College of Cardinals.
#6
The Vatican trial of the century involving Cardinal Angelo Becciu and the alleged mismangement of Holy See funds continued. For the first time in history, a Vatican prosecutor proposed maximum sentencing on a cardinal of the Catholic Church.
The top 5 most viewed videos in 2023 revolved around a historic moment: the death and funeral of Pope Benedict XVI.
#5
The world looked back at the man behind the Pope from his reserved, quiet childhood to his work as a professor in Germany and finally the moment of his election to the papacy.
After the great Pope John Paul II, the elder cardinals chose me – a simple and humble hard-worker from the Lord's vine. It comforts me knowing the Lord knows how to act with insufficient instruments and, above all, I trust in your prayers.
#4
People around the globe followed the funeral preparations for the German Pope as workers set up a system of bars and beams for his tomb, which is near the tomb of one of his predecessors, John Paul I.
#3
On the first day of the new year, the Vatican released images of Pope Benedict XVI lying in state at the Mater Ecclesiae monastery, where he had lived the last 9 years of his life.
#2
After the world said their final goodbyes to the Pope who made history for his resignation, his body was interred in the Crypt of the Popes under the main part of St. Peter's Basilica.
Dear brothers and sisters, we humbly beseech God, the Father of mercies, on behalf of Pope Emeritus Benedict, that he may be sleep in the Lord.
#1
And to round out the year, the most viewed video of 2023 was the moment Pope Benedict XVI's body was moved from the Mater Ecclesiae monastery to St. Peter's Basilica for pilgrims from around the world to pay their last respects.
In a year of historic moments, including the first time in history a pope presided over the funeral of his predecessor, these were the videos that people watched the most.
KG
