VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Benedict XVI has met with the woman who knocked him over during Christmas Eve Mass and has forgiven her.
Vatican spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi says Benedict met with Susanna Maiolo and her relatives at the end of his general audience Wednesday.
Lombardi reported that Maiolo told the pontiff she was sorry. Benedict inquired about her health and “wanted to demonstrate his forgiveness.”
Maiolo jumped a security barricade in St. Peter’s Basilica at the start of Christmas Eve Mass and pulled Benedict down when a security guard tackled her. The pope was unhurt.