- The presidents, the fees, the pilgrims attend the funeral mass of Pope Francis.
- The funeral of Pope Francis break the tradition with burial outside the Vatican.
- Huge crowds come together for a funeral ceremony in St Peter’s Square.
The presidents, royalty and a multitude of simple mourning people made their farewell to Pope Francis on Saturday at his funeral, where a cardinal said that the heritage of the pontiff to take care of migrants, the oppressed and the environment should not die with him.
On the one hand of the coffin of Francis, in the vast square of Saint-Pierre, American president Donald Trump faced the Pope on these questions.
On the other hand, the cardinals were seated who must decide whether the successor of Francis must continue his thrust for a more open or cede church to the conservatives who want to return to a more traditional papacy.
“Rich in human warmth and deeply sensitive to today’s challenges, Pope Francis really shared the anxieties, sufferings and hopes of that time,” said Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, who presided over the funeral mass.
The Argentinian pope, who had reigned for 12 years, died on Monday at the age of 88 after undergoing a stroke.
The applause sounded at the start of the ceremony while 14 carriers gloved in white wore the coffin, encrusted with a large cross, the Saint-Pierre basilica and in the square.
Aerial views of the Vatican have shown a patchwork of colors – the black of the dark costume of world leaders, red clothes of some 250 cardinals, purple carried by some of the 400 bishops and white worn by 4,000 priests.
Choirs sang the Latin hymns and prayers were recited in various languages, notably Italian, Spanish, Chinese, Portuguese and Arab, reflecting the world scope of the Roman Catholic Church of 1.4 billion members.
The faithful have rushed to St Peter’s for the first hours while many have been camped to try to get places in front of the crowd. The Vatican estimated that some 200,000 people had gathered at the start of the service.
“We mean goodbye because he (was a living) living saint, very humble and simple,” said Mary James, a Franciscan nun, who had been standing overnight to guarantee a good place.
Foreigners
Francis’ death inaugurated a meticulously planned transition period, marked by the old ritual, pump and mourning. In the past three days, around 250,000 people have exceeded his body, which has been set up in an open coffin in front of the altar of the 16th century cavernous basilica.
Before taking place, Trump and his wife, Melania, pay tribute to the coffin of Francis in the Saint-Pierre basilica. The coffin was closed on Friday evening.
Among the other heads of state who stole in Rome, the presidents of Argentina, France, Gabon, Germany, the Philippines and Poland, as well as the Prime Ministers of Great Britain and New Zealand, and many Royals, including the King and the Queen of Spain.
Many people in the square applauded when the president of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky appeared. Zelensky met Trump while the two were in Rome and had a “very productive discussion,” said a White House official. Their meeting occurred at a time when Trump puts pressure on an agreement to end the war in Ukraine.
Brilliant tradition
Francis, the first non -European pope for almost 13 centuries, fought to reshape the Roman Catholic Church, defending himself with the poor and marginalized, while questioning the rich nations to help migrants and reverse climate change.
“Francis has left everyone a wonderful testimony of humanity, a holy life and universal paternity,” said an official summary of his papacy, written in Latin, and placed next to his body.
The traditionalists rejected his efforts to make the Church more transparent, while his calls for the end of conflicts, divisions and rampant capitalism often fell into the ears of a deaf.
The Pope avoided a large part of the pump and the privilege generally associated with papacy. He brought this desire for greater simplicity in his funeral, after rewriting the elaborate and long funeral rites used before.
Francis also chose to give up a secular practice of burying the popes in three coffins nested in cypress, lead and oak. Instead, it was placed in a single zinc -line wood coffin, which was sealed closed overnight.
In a new break with tradition, he will be the first pope to be buried outside the Vatican for more than a century, preferring the basilica of Rome de St Mary Major, about 5.5 kilometers (3.4 miles) of St Peter’s, like his last rest.
His tomb comes from “Franciscus”, his name in Latin, written on top. A reproduction of the simple and iron-plated cross which he wore around his neck is suspended above the marble slab.
The funeral procession will lead him through the city for the last time, allowing the Romans to say goodbye.
Italy has set up one of the largest security operations that the country has seen since the funeral of John Paul II. He closed the airspace above the city and called additional security forces, with anti-aircraft missiles and patrol boats keeping the event.
As soon as Francis is buried, the attention will pass to who could succeed him.
It is unlikely that the secret conclave to elect a successor begins before May 6, and may not start for several days after that, giving the cardinals time to hold regular meetings in advance to summarize and assess the state of the church, assailed by financial problems and ideological divisions.
