[theswag]

VATICAN CITY - Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger of Germany, a hard-line guardian of conservative doctrine, was elected the new pope Tuesday evening in the first conclave of the new millennium. He chose the name Pope Benedict XVI and called himself “a simple, humble worker.”

An inauguration Mass for the new pope was set for Sunday at 10 a.m. local time, 4 a.m. ET. Benedict XVI decided to spend the night at the Vatican hotel where cardinals have been staying, and to dine with the cardinals.

Ratzinger, the first German pope since the 11th century, emerged onto the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, where he waved to a wildly cheering crowd of tens of thousands and gave his first blessing as the church's 265th pope. Other cardinals clad in their crimson robes came out on other balconies to watch him.

“Dear brothers and sisters, after the great Pope John Paul II, the cardinals have elected me — a simple, humble worker in the vineyard of the Lord,” he said. “I entrust myself to your prayers,” the pope said.

“The fact that the Lord can work and act even with insufficient means consoles me, and above all I entrust myself to your prayers,” the new pope said in his first public address. “I entrust myself to your prayers.”

The crowd responded by chanting “Benedict! Benedict!”

In Washington, President Bush President offered his congratulations, calling the new pope "a man of great wisdom and knowledge."

Hes the first German Pope since the 11th century.... Dang.