To the chanting of Christ’s promise, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live,” the mortal remains of Pope Francis were carried into St Peter’s Basilica by 14 pallbearers. Source: CNS.
Thousands of people made an early morning pilgrimage to St Peter’s Square yesterday to witness the transfer and pray for the late Pope; they erupted in applause when his body, in an open casket, reached the square and again when it reached the top of the basilica steps.
The basilica will be open each day until Friday for visits by the public. Another rite, to close the casket, is scheduled for late Friday.
The Pope’s funeral will be held on Saturday in St Peter’s Square with burial to follow in Rome’s Basilica of St Mary Major.
US Cardinal Kevin Farrell, as chamberlain of the Holy Roman Church, led the prayer service that accompanied the transfer of the body from the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae, where the Pope had lived and where he died on Easter Sunday at the age of 88.
More than 80 cardinals joined the procession ahead of Cardinal Farrell, who was wearing a red and gold cope, and immediately preceded the pallbearers flanked by members of the Pontifical Swiss Guard.
Directly behind the casket were the men closest to the Pope in his final days: his nurse, Massimiliano Strappetti; his two valets; and his personal secretaries.
Three religious sisters and a laywoman, who the Pope had appointed to top positions in the Roman Curia, came behind them: Franciscan Sister of the Eucharist Raffaella Petrini, president of the office governing Vatican City State; Salesian Sister Alessandra Smerilli, secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development; Xavière Missionary Sister Nathalie Becquart, undersecretary of the Synod of Bishops; and Emilce Cuda, secretary of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.
The basilica’s bell-ringer sounded the death knell as the procession began.
Pope Francis’s body, in a zinc-lined wooden casket covered in red fabric, was placed before the main altar on a low platform cut at an angle so that people coming to pay their respects could see his face.
Cardinal Farrell blessed the Pope’s body with holy water and incense and led those assembled in praying the Lord’s Prayer.
FULL STORY
Prayer, pilgrims accompany Pope’s body to basilica (By Cindy Wooden, CNS)
