For most of the world’s more than 1 billion Roman Catholics, Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation announcement was unthinkable.

Not since the year 1415 had a pope decided to step down, and when that previous resignation — by Pope Gregory XII — occurred, it was in a deal to end what now is referred to as the Great Western Schism, when there were competing papal claimants.

Benedict won’t be as fondly remembered as his immediate predecessor, the beloved Pope John Paul II. However, the departing pontiff did dedicate his pontificate to rekindling faith in a world that he often lamented was drifting farther from God.

“In vast areas of the world today, there is a strange forgetfulness of God,” he told 1 million young people on World Youth Day in Cologne, Germany, in 2005.

But Bendict’s pontificate was made difficult by the sex abuse scandal, the church’s biggest crisis in decades, if not centuries. Over just a few months in 2010, thousands of people in Europe, South America, Australia and other places came forward with allegations of priests who raped and molested them as children, and bishops who covered up the crimes. By that time, the sex-abuse problem involving a number of priests already had surfaced in the United States.

The fact that Benedict never took action against bishops who ignored or covered up the abuse of their priests or who moved known pedophiles to new positions where they abused again, raised questions about the infallibility of the office of pope — a strongly held belief within the Catholic faith.

Likewise, he was at times controversial, as with setting the Catholic Church on a conservative, tradition-minded path that often alienated progressives.

But at the same time he will be remembered for his initiative aimed at restoring traditional Catholic practice and worship to 21st century Catholicism, correcting what he perceived to be erroneous interpretations tied to the Second Vatican Council 50 years ago.

But his personal style was unlike that of his predecessor, who kept himself more in the public eye, including by visits to the United States. Benedict’s style was described as “wooden.” He was not a showman or media darling.

With the exodus of Catholics from the faith and the lingering questions surrounding papal decision making, one challenge of the cardinals who will elect Benedict’s successor will be to select someone more outgoing, who at the same time will remain stern regarding the church’s teachings.

Benedict’s successor will face the challenge of restoring Catholics’ enthusiasm in their faith, also bringing back those who have drifted away.

The new pope must be a magnet for the church, not merely a caretaker, as some observers perceived Benedict at the time of his election in 2005, based on the fact that he was 78, the oldest pope elected in 275 years.

However, Benedict was not merely a caretaker, as demonstrated by his decisiveness — sometimes lauded, sometimes controversial. In his first year, he signed off on a long-awaited document barring most gays from the priesthood, riling many in the American church. However, in a document welcomed by liberal Catholics, he also essentially ended the belief in “limbo,” saying there was hope to think babies who died without being baptized could go to heaven.

In 2010, Benedict raised the possibility of resigning if he became too old or sick to continue.

On Monday, in making his announcement, he said his health had deteriorated to the point that he was no longer capable of adequately fulfilling his ministry.

It was an unexpected decision nonetheless, one that shocked most people — Catholics and non-Catholics alike. But all considered, it was a commendable decision acknowledging all that the papacy faces going forward.

For the most part, Benedict and his papacy will be remembered for positive reasons.