The ceremony, which begins at 9:30 a.m., will not be of a state character, as it is a pope emeritus. The rite will be presided over by another living pope, Francis, something that has not happened since 1802.
Euskaraz irakurri: Benedikto XVI.aren aldeko hileta hartuko du San Petri plazak, 100,000 people inguru bilduta
On St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican today, Thursday, the funeral of the Pope Emeritus Benedict XVIpresided over by his successor, Francis, and in front of tens of thousands of faithful and authorities – about 100,000 people are expected, according to estimates by the Rome Police Department.
The funeral will start at 9:30 am at the doors of the basilica, although the coffin in which the remains of the German pope will rest will leave 40 minutes before the temple visited by 200,000 people, where the funeral chapel is installed.
The rite will be presided over by Pope Francis, although it will be led by Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals.
Strong police force
Vatican City is armored with security agents and already tonight an intense movement of worshipers, tourists and curious people has been observed. At 06:00, entry into St. Peter’s Square was allowed for the faithful, who slowly and orderly began to take their places.
To access St. Peter’s Square it is necessary to pass checks and go through a metal detector, and all parked vehicles are closed to traffic and removed from the streets adjacent to the Vatican.
According to the security plan approved by the police of the Italian capital, the airspace in the entire area will be closed and helicopters, snipers, special forces including those for counter-terrorism, firefighters and municipal police have been made available. There will be more than 1,000 agents in total.
funeral with changes
The ceremony will be solemn but “austere”, at the express wish of this pope, and will not be of a state character, as Benedict XVI was not a “reigning” pope after his abdication in 2013, in an unprecedented gesture in six centuries of history.
So the Vatican has had to make a series of “adjustments”; for example, the prayers of the last supplications will be omitted, those of the Church of Rome and the Eastern Churches, which are very specific to the active Pope.
The funeral will last about three hours and after the rites, the triple coffin of Benedict XVI will be transferred to the crypt of the Vatican Basilica, where, among other things, the remains of John Paul II rest.
Another peculiarity of these funerals is that they will be presided over by another living pope, Francis, something that had not happened since 1802when Pius VII had to preside over the funeral of his predecessor, Pius VI, who had previously died in France as a prisoner of Napoleon.
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Source: EITB
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
