Pope Steps Down Today, His Twitter Account Closes

In Vatican City, Italy at 8 p.m. (2 p.m. EST), the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI will step down as Pope, triggering the process of the election of a new Pope.

Pincrest Academy located in Cumming will pause for a moment of silence at 2 p.m. and remember the intentions of Pope Benedict XVI.

According Vivian Heard, spokesperson of the school, students, staff and faculty will pray in grateful thanksgiving for his love and guidance, and ask God to bless him and the new shepherd of our one, holy and apostolic Catholic Church.

One of the many changes that will occur when the Pope leaves his position is his Twitter account. The Huffington Post reports, the social media account will be shut down.

The article states the following:

Msgr. Paul Tighe, who works in the Pope's social communications office, clarifies to Vatican Radio that the account will be inactive for now and that "@pontifex will be available for use by the next Pope as he may wish."

The Pope's first tweet was posted on Dec. 12, 2012 and as of this writing he has posted a total of 39, with the latest stating:

Thank you for your love and support. May you always experience the joy that comes from putting Christ at the centre of your lives.

The Pope's account has more than 1.6 million followers, he in turn follows only eight other accounts.

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