Pope marks first year in office

He told tens of thousands of people gathered in St Peter's Square in Rome that his election a year ago had come as a complete surprise to him.

He added that he could not do the job alone and asked the crowd to continue praying for him.

In his speech, the Pope also strongly condemned the "abominable" suicide bombing in Tel Aviv which killed nine people on Monday.

Conciliatory image

As the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the Pope earned a reputation for being strict on issues of doctrine.

But BBC Rome correspondent David Willey says he has projected a kindlier and more conciliatory image than his critics expected.

According to the Vatican, more than four million people attended Pope Benedict's masses, audiences and prayer appearances in the past year.

When he was chosen, at age 78, to succeed John Paul II he was the oldest pope elected in 275 years and the first German one since the 11th Century.