Marcos, world leaders to pay last respects to Pope Francis today
The Vatican made final preparations Friday for Pope Francis’ funeral today (Saturday) as the last of the huge crowds of mourners filed through St Peter’s Basilica to view his open coffin.
Over 250,000 people have already paid their last respects to Francis, whose coffin will be closed at 8:00 pm (1800 GMT; 2 a.m. Saturday, Manila time) in a ceremony attended by senior cardinals.
Throughout the day, vast crowds of people had packed Via della Conciliazione, the wide avenue leading to the basilica, pilgrims and tourists mingling with Italians enjoying the April 25 public holiday.
At least 130 foreign delegations have confirmed their attendance at the late pontiff’s funeral, including around 50 heads of state and 10 reigning monarchs, the Vatican said.
The high-level attendees include two Asian leaders—President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., joined by First Lady Liza Marcos, and Indian President Droupadi Murmu.
After the funeral, Francis’ coffin will be driven at a walking pace to be buried at his favorite church, Rome’s papal basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.
The hearse will pass down Rome’s Fori Imperiali—where the city’s ancient temples lie—and past the Colosseum, according to officials.
Big screens will be set up along the route on which to watch the ceremony, Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said.
Francis was a champion of underdogs, and a group of “poor and needy” will be at Santa Maria Maggiore to welcome the coffin, the Vatican said.
Francis will be interred in the ground, his simple tomb marked with just one word: Franciscus.
People will be able to visit the tomb from Sunday morning, as all eyes turn to the process of choosing Francis’ successor.
‘Novendiales’ schedule
The Vatican has set the “Novendiales” Masses or nine days of mourning that will start today and will conclude on May 4.
“These celebrations are open to all. However, each day they will involve the participation of a different group, taking into account its links with the Roman Pontiff. This variety of assemblies shows, in a certain way, both the scope of the ministry of the Supreme Pastor and the universality of the Church of Rome,” the Holy See Press Office said.
On Sunday, there will be a Mass for the Jubilee of Teenagers and for Vatican employees to be followed by a mass for the Catholics and clergy in Rome on Monday.
On Tuesday, a mass will be held for chapters of the papal basilicas while a separate mass for the papal chapel is scheduled on Wednesday.
Thursday’s mass will be for the Roman Curia followed by a mass for the Eastern Churches on Friday.
The last two masses for the “Novendiales” will be for the institutes of consecrated life and apostolic societies (Saturday, May 3) and for the papal chapel (Sunday, May 4).
In Manila, the Apostolic Nunciature will open condolence books for public signing on Tuesday, April 29.
The condolence books will be available for signing from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Four Filipino Cardinals are expected to attend funeral — Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines president Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, Cardinal Orlando Quevedo, Manila Archbishop Jose Cardinal Advincula and Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization Luis Antonio Cardinal who has been based at the Vatican since 2019.
However, only David, Advincula and Tagle will participate in a papal conclave.
Security preparations
Italian and Vatican authorities have placed the area around St Peter’s under tight security with drones blocked, snipers on roofs and fighter jets on standby.
Further checkpoints will be activated on Friday night (Saturday morning, Manila time), police said.
Vast crowds of people on Friday morning packed Via della Conciliazione, the wide avenue leading to the Vatican, for the third and final day of the pope’s lying-in-state.
“Whatever happens, we have to get inside,” said Ian Delmonte, 35, from the Philippines.
“We love the pope, we feel blessed to see him a last (time),” added Michelle Alcaide, 35, also from the Philippines, as she queued.
For a second night in a row, the Vatican kept St Peter’s open past the scheduled hours to accommodate the queues, only closing the doors between 2:30am (0030 GMT) and 5:40am Friday.
“Night is the most intimate moment, the Lord always manifests himself at night,” said Nicoletta Tomassetti, 60, who visited the Basilica in the very early hours of Friday morning.
“It was very emotional. In prayer, I asked the pope for some things and I know he will give them to me,” she told AFP.
The Catholic Church’s first Latin American pope died on Monday aged 88, less than a month after spending weeks in hospital with severe pneumonia.
“It was like saying goodbye to a father” who “loved me and will continue to love me as and more than before,” Filipa Castronovo, 76, an Italian nun said after seeing the coffin on Friday.
Global tributes
The Argentine pontiff, who had long suffered failing health, defied doctors’ orders by appearing at Easter, the most important moment in the Catholic calendar.
It was his last public appearance.
Condolences have flooded in from around the world for the Jesuit, an energetic reformer who championed those on the fringes of society in his 12 years as head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.
He used his last speech to rail against those who stir up “contempt… towards the vulnerable, the marginalized, and migrants.”
“It’s impressive to see all these people,” French cardinal Francois-Xavier Bustillo said of the queuing crowds, describing Francis as “a man of the people”.
“It’s a beautiful response, a beautiful embrace of his ministry, of his pontificate.”
Selfie ban
The pope’s body was dressed in his papal vestments — a red chasuble, white mitre and black shoes — and laid inside a simple wooden coffin.
On Thursday, the Vatican banned people from taking photos inside the basilica, a move that eased the queue. It came after some mourners took selfies — deemed by many disrespectful — with the coffin.
Cardinals from around the world have been returning to Rome for the funeral and the conclave, when a new pontiff will be elected.
In the absence of a pope, the cardinals have been meeting every day to agree the next steps.
They have yet to announce a date for the conclave, but it must begin no fewer than 15 days and no more than 20 days after a pope’s death.
Only those under the age of 80 — currently some 135 cardinals — are eligible to vote.
Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who was number two to Francis, is the favorite, according to British bookmakers William Hill.
They put him ahead of Filipino Luis Antonio Tagle, the Metropolitan Archbishop emeritus of Manila, followed by Ghana’s Cardinal Peter Turkson, and Matteo Zuppi, the Archbishop of Bologna. With AFP
