Pope Francis’ funeral starts as his coffin laid in front of St. Peter’s Basilica
Pope Francis’ coffin has been laid in the square in front of St. Peter’s Basilica, signalling the start of the funeral service which will be led by the dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re.
Francis’ tombstone is made of marble from his granparents’ town
Reporting from Vatican City
The late pope’s tombstone is made of marble from the northern Italian region of Liguria, where Francis’ grandparents were from, according to the Vatican.
World leaders join crowds in St. Peter’s Square
President Donald Trump is one of the many world leaders to join the crowds in St. Peter’s Square for the funeral, which has now been closed to the public after reaching full capacity of 50,000 people.
His predecessor Joe Biden is also attending along with Britain’s Prince William. King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain, Sweden’s King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia, will be among other European royal families represented, along with Norway’s Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, French President Emmanuel Macron and United Nations Secretary General António Guterres are among the 164 foreign delegations invited to attend. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, are also in Rome for the funeral.
The guests will be seated according to French alphabetical order.
The poor will receive Pope Francis’ body at his burial in the Basilica
Reporting from Vatican City
A group of poor and needy people will welcome Pope Francis body at St Mary Major, where he will be buried later today, symbolizing the legacy left behind the late pontiff, who chose his papal name to emphasize the spirit of poverty and peace embodied by Saint Francis of Assisi.
“For this reason, a group of poor and needy people will be present on the steps leading to the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major to pay their final respects to Pope Francis before the entombment of his casket,” the Vatican said Thursday.
It is very symbolic of the Pope’s life, pontificate and legacy that the rich and powerful, including the heads of state, cardinals, and clergy of the world will bid him farewell when he leaves St. Peter’s Square one last time after the funeral, and the poor and destitute will welcome him on the steps of the Basilica where he will rest in peace.
St. Peter’s Square close to full capacity ahead of the pope’s funeral
Reporting from Vatican City
About an hour before the funeral of Pope Francis gets underway, St. Peter’s Square looks close to reaching its full capacity of 40,000 people, police said.
An estimated 100,000 people are already present on Via della Conciliazione, the large road which leads up to St. Peter’s Square and along the access roads, the force said in a statement, adding that 140 delegations have already entered the Vatican this morning.
A series of ancient traditions rule the pope’s funeral and conclave
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In life, Pope Francis strayed from the more conservative path forged by his predecessors Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict.
But in death, Francis will follow many of John Paul’s footsteps.
The demise of the first Argentine to lead the Roman Catholic Church set into motion a series of rituals, some of which go back more than 2,000 years and have been used to bury more than 250 popes.
They are compiled in a more than 400-page tome called the “Ordo exsequiarum Romani pontificis,” which includes the liturgy, music and prayers used for papal funerals over the centuries.
Major security operation underway ahead of Pope Francis’ funeral
As thousands are set to gather for Pope Francis’ funeral on Saturday, security will be on high alert with thousands of police and special forces on the ground, aerial surveillance, and an anti-drone military unit in the area. NBC’s Molly Hunter reports for TODAY.
Cardinals, conclaves and popes, in five charts
Most internal promotions don’t get this much attention. Most job selection processes don’t have centuries of history behind them — and few, if any, have a special name.
But then, most job selections don’t end with a new pope.
Catholic cardinals from around the world are converging on Vatican City in advance of the conclave that will elect the successor to Pope Francis, who died Monday. Favorites have emerged, and once the conclave begins it likely won’t be long before a new pope is announced, as data shows that conclaves don’t take as long as they used to.
Conclaves were first used to elect a pope about eight centuries ago, with early elections lasting months, even years.
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