The last day of Pope Francis that is in the state, the great crowds go to the Vatican
/ News/ AP
Pope Francis as a model for the next leader
Tens of thousands of mourners have waited online hours to say goodbye to Pope FrancisWHO He died on Monday After suffering a stroke at the age of 88. A higher participation than expected led the Vatican to extend the opening hours of the basilica during the night.
The Vatican said Friday that some 150,000 people had presented their respects to Francis. Your open coffinwhich was placed in front of the main altar of the Basilica of San Pedro. Some prayed, and others held smartphones high for a photo of the late Pontiff, which is presented with red robes with the pointed miter of a bishop and a rosary intertwined in his hands.
The basilica remained open until around 3 in the morning, the local time on Friday and closed only a few hours before reopening the mourners who began arriving before dawn. The three days of public visualization are scheduled to finish at 6 pm on Friday, one hour earlier than announced previously, after which the simple wood of Francis wood will be sealed in preparation for its funeral.
Heads of state and royalty will begin to converge in Rome on Friday to Saturday funeral In the Plaza de San Pedro del Vaticano.
President Trump and Argentine President Javier Milei are among the leaders who arrive on Friday. Francis was Born and raised In Argentina.
The Vatican said that 130 delegations are confirmed, including 50 heads of state and 10 reigning monarchs.
The work of the conclave for Choose a new Pope It will not begin until at least on May 5, after nine days of public mourning.
The cardinals have also arrived in Rome, with 113 meetings on Thursday morning to discuss the Church’s businesses. They will meet again on Friday before taking a break for the weekend.
“We are preparing ourselves, but we have not yet entered the most intense phase. We are in the organizational phase,” said Italian Cardinal Fernando Filoni.
According to Francis’s hug to the marginalized, the Vatican said that a group of poor and needy people will meet the Pope’s coffin to pay tribute when he arrives at the main basilica of St. Mary for the funeral on Saturday.
The grave is preparing behind a wooden barrier inside the basilica that he chose to be close to an icon of the Virgin that venerated often prayed before.
The photos released by the Vatican on Friday show the marble tombstone floor against the pavement, with the simple Latin engraving that he requested in his last testament: “Franciscus”
Trump is expected to travel with the first lady Melania Trump, arrive after Francis’s coffin has been sealed.
Former President Joe Biden, who had a personal and personal relationship with Francis dating from his visit to the United States in 2015, will attend the funeralSaid Biden’s office.
Among the foreign dignitarians confirmed for the papal funeral are Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the first lady Olena Zelenska, French president Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Prince William, King of Spain Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, Hungarian President Viktor Orban, Brasilia, Luiz Incio Lula da Silva.
Israel will send its Vatican ambassador, Yaron Sideman, a lower level diplomat. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered did not offer condolences on behalf of the Jewish state until Friday.
The relations between Israel and the Pope had been tensioned since the war broke out in Gaza. The Pontiff denounced Hamas to Israel’s attack, but also often criticized Israel’s actions during his military operations in Gaza.
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