VATICAN CITY, June 29 (UPI) -- Pope Benedict XVI marked the 60th anniversary of his ordination Wednesday by posting his first Twitter message, announcing a new Vatican Web site.
The Rev. Federico Lombardi, a spokesman for the pope, told CNN an iPad with the message on it was prepared for Benedict.
"The tablet was presented to him," Lombardi said. "He did the click and sent the tweet."
The pope, then Joseph Ratzinger, was ordained a priest on June 29, 1951, in Freising, Germany, with his brother, Georg.
The 84-year-old pope's level of comfort with Twitter and other new means of communication is unclear. But the Vatican has proved adept with iPhone apps and Facebook pages, using them to reach out to the faithful.
Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli, who runs the Pontifical Council for Social Media, said the new Web site will provide one place for all Vatican online news.
The pope's tweet read: "Dear Friends, I just launched News.va Praised be our Lord Jesus Christ! With my prayers and blessings, Benedictus XVI."
