VATICAN POPE

Pope Benedict XVI acknowledges worshipers after celebrating a Vespers prayer inside the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, in Rome, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2009. Pope Benedict XVI has praised as "providential'' the Second Vatican Council, the 1960s meetings that led to liberalizing reforms in the Church. Benedict spoke at prayer service Sunday marking the 50th anniversary of the announcement to convene Vatican II, which led to reforms such as Mass being celebrated in local languages rather than Latin. (AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito)