On Thursday, Pope Francis presided over the funeral of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, in front of tens of thousands of mourners in St Peter’s Square, an unprecedented occasion in modern times.
Cardinals, dignitaries, and thousands of priests and nuns from around the world attended to say farewell to the German philosopher, who astonished the Catholic church in 2013 by becoming the first pontiff to retire in six centuries.
The proceedings were led for the first time in modern history by a sitting pope, Francis, who delivered the sermon in Italian as part of a multi-lingual ceremony including a Latin mass.
“Benedict… “May your delight be complete as you hear his (God’s) voice, now and forever!” the pontiff remarked in remembrance of his predecessor, who died last Saturday at the age of 95.
At the end of the liturgy, Francis lowered his head and made the sign of the cross over Benedict’s plain cypress wood coffin, which was carried inside St Peter’s Basilica by 12 besuited pallbearers.
Benedict will be buried in a tomb in the basilica’s crypt, where John Paul II’s body lay in state before being transported for his beatification in 2011. In 2014, he was declared a saint.
The ex-pope, born Joseph Ratzinger, had not been a head of state in a decade, yet foreign leaders in attendance included German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
According to authorities, an estimated 50,000 people gathered in the square for the burial, with many of them queuing since dawn.
“Benedict is a bit like my father, so I had to pay homage to him,” said Cristina Grisanti, a 59-year-old from Milan, who hailed the former pope’s “purity, his candour, his mildness”.
An estimated 195,000 people had already paid their respects when the body was laid in state earlier.
Benedict was the first German pope in 1,000 years, and church bells rang around Germany as the burial concluded on Thursday, while many Germans were also in Rome.
“We owe him a great deal. “We want to express that we support him,” said Benedikt Rothweiler, 34, who traveled with his family from Aachen.
“In fact, we know far too little about Benedict. He always accepted everything as God intended. This is an excellent example for us humans.”
– Two popes –
Benedict, a great theologian but a contentious character who alienated many Catholics with his vigorous defense of conservative orthodoxy on problems such as abortion, was the first.
His eight years as Pope were also marked by crises, ranging from infighting inside the Vatican to the global scandal of clerical sex abuse and its cover-up.
When he resigned, Benedict stated that he no longer possessed the “strength of mind and body” required for the job, and he retired to a tranquil life in a monastery in the Vatican gardens.
His death ended an extraordinary circumstance in which two “men in white” – himself and Francis — shared the little city state.
– Two popes – Benedict, a great theologian but a contentious character who alienated many Catholics with his vigorous defense of conservative orthodoxy on problems such as abortion, was the first.
His eight years as Pope were also marked by crises, ranging from infighting inside the Vatican to the global scandal of clerical sex abuse and its cover-up.
When he resigned, Benedict stated that he no longer possessed the “strength of mind and body” required for the job, and he retired to a tranquil life in a monastery in the Vatican gardens.
His death ended an extraordinary circumstance in which two “men in white” – himself and Francis — shared the little city state.
– European royals –
Outside of St Peter’s, many of the world’s 1.3 billion Catholics were expected to watch and listen to the funeral rituals on television and radio.
Churches around the majority-Catholic Philippines performed requiem masses for the previous pontiff, notably at Malolos Cathedral near Manila.
“To see this is an incomprehensible experience,” said Cherry Castro, 67, who was among the 500 people who gathered for the unique occasion.
On Thursday, Portugal announced a national day of grief, while flags were flown at half-mast on public buildings throughout Italy.
Germany and Italy were the only formal delegations.
Other dignitaries in attendance included Belgian and Spanish royals, the presidents of Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Hungary, Slovenia, and Togo, as well as the premiers of the Czech Republic, Gabon, and Slovakia.
Traditional papal funerals were followed, with a few alterations to prayers and readings to reflect Benedict’s status as emeritus pope.
His cypress coffin was to be placed inside a zinc coffin, then a wooden casing, before being laid in the vault.
Coins and medals made during his pontificate, as well as a written document detailing his pontificate sealed in a metal cylinder, will be put alongside his body, as is customary.
