CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy, SEPT. 29, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI bid farewell to the religious, civil and military staff of the papal summer residence of Castel Gandolfo as he prepares to return to the Vatican on Tuesday.
The Pontiff received the personnel in an audience today, expressing his "sincere gratitude" to the "great family of Castel Gandolfo."
He thanked the religious and civil authorities of Castel Gandolfo for their hospitality, especially Bishop Marcello Semeraro of Albano, the local parish priest and the municipality Castel Gandolfo, located in the Lazio region of Italy.
The Holy Father also greeted the administrative personnel of the Vatican Governorate, as well as the Italian forces of order and the Vatican police, whom he remembered especially today on the feast of St. Michael, their patron.
He also thanked the 31st Flight Unit of the Italian Air Force, responsible for transporting the Pope via helicopter from Castel Gandolfo.
The papal summer residence of Castel Gandolfo, on the shores of Lake Albano, has been used by Popes since the 17th century, and is one of the extra-territorial properties of Vatican City State, established in the Lateran Pacts of 1929. Pope Pius XII died there in 1958, as did Pope Paul VI in 1978.
