Pope Francis funeral newest: Historic service begins at Vatican as world leaders be part of hundreds of mourners
The historic Pope Francis has begun, bringing closure to a 12-year papacy marked by humility and simplicity.
Hundreds of thousands have flocked to St Peter’s Square in Vatican City, hoping to catch a short glimpse of Francis’ wooden coffin as it passes to its final burial place in the Basilica of St Mary Major.
Major world leaders including Donald Trump, Emmanuel Macron, Sir Keir Starmer, Prince William and Volodymyr Zelensky – whose appearance drew applause from the crowds – are in attendance.
Some 220 cardinals, 750 bishops and priests are expected to be near the altar, and more than 4,000 other priests will be in the square.
The service, led by the dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, is taking place five days after the 88-year-old Pontiff’s death on Monday from a stroke. It follows several days of mourning for the Argentinian remembered for championing the downtrodden.
On Friday night the Pope’s coffin was sealed in a private Vatican ceremony after three days of public viewings attended by 250,000 people.
Funeral procession beginning
Pope Francis’ funeral procession is now beginning in St Peter’s Square, Vatican City.
There was a second round of applause as the Pope’s simple zinc lined wooden casket began its procession through the Basilica.
The coffin will be laid in the square in front of St Peter’s Basilica, where the mass will begin.
Donald Trump arrives at Pope Francis’ funeral
Donald Trump has arrived at St Peter’s Square for Pope Francis’ funeral.
The US president went into the basilica with his wife, Melania, to pay his respects to the late pope.
He will now join other world leaders including Prince William, Ukrainian prime minister Volodymyr Zelensky and UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer for the funeral mass.
Prince William arrives
The Prince of Wales has arrived at Pope Francis’ funeral.
Prince William paid his respects to the late Pontiff inside the basilica alongside the UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer.
Emmanuel Macron arrives
French President Emmanuel Macron has arrived at Pope Francis’ funeral.
Macron briefly went inside the basilica to pay his respects to the late Pope Francis.
He followed Argentina’s president Javier Milei, who will be seated ahead of other world leaders, as Francis was from Argentina.
Giorgia Meloni arrives
Giorgia Meloni has arrived at St Peter’s Square.
The right-wing Italian prime minister clashed with Pope Francis on political ideals, but mourned him after his death as a friend who had given her comfort in tough times and done his duty to the end.
Who has arrived, who is to come
Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to be filing into St Peter’s Square to attend Pope Francis’ funeral this morning.
Among the crowd will be royalty and world leaders, some of whom have already began filing into the square.
Former US president Joe Biden was among the first to arrive on Saturday morning, followed shortly by Hungary and Greece’s prime ministers.
Royalty including Norway’s crown prince and Sweden’s King have also already arrived.
Other royalty including William, the Prince of Wales are expected to arrive soon, alongside the US president Donald Trump and UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer.
Vatican City awaits beginning of funeral mass
World Affairs Editor Sam Kiley reports from St Peter’s Square:
St Peter’s Square is not at capacity as worshippers gathered for Pope Francis’s funeral in an atmosphere of subdued celebration.
The religious part of the events got underway at 9:20am exactly with prayers, as the spring sun blazed against the basilica no doubt dazzling the cardinals seated on its steps – as they contemplated the legacy of the late pope and who to choose as the next Holy Father.
Biden arrives at funeral
Former US president Joe Biden has arrived in St Peter’s Square.
The mass is due to begin in around 20 minutes, with other world leaders including current US president Donald Trump expected to join.
How will the world leaders be seated?
With 170 world leaders attending Pope Francis’s funeral, the seating plan has been described by Cardinal Vincent Nichols, leader of Catholics in England and Wales, as a “master plan” in stage-managing “big egos”.
The official delegations will sit at a section to the right of the altar at the top of the steps leading toward St. Peter’s Basilica.
Francis’s birth country of Argentina will take precedence in the seating arrangements, followed by Italy, as the pope is the bishop of Rome and the leader of the nation’s Catholic bishops.
Thereafter, reigning sovereigns such as Prince William will be seated “in alphabetical order, but in French language”, as this is considered the language of diplomacy.
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said on Friday that no distinction would be made between Catholic and non-Catholic royalty for the seating order.
This will be followed by heads of state, and later heads of government like the UK prime minister and Donald Trump – who may be disappointed to find himself not in the front row.
What to expect today:
At 10am local time (9am UK time), the funeral for Pope Francis will begin.
Here is how we are expecting it to unfold:
– Before 10am, hundreds of thousands of people – including over 50 heads of state and 10 reigning sovereigns – will file into the square.
– The funeral will start at 10am, when the Pope’s coffin will be laid in the square in front of the basilica.
– The service will be led by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals and will be mostly held in Latin.
– The two-and-a-half hour ceremony will begin with the entrance antiphon, a selection of psalm verses or scripture passages that are traditionally sung or recited.
– This will be followed by the Penitential Act which allows the faithful to confess their sins to God and an opening prayer.
– The first reading will be given in English by Kielce Gussie, a journalist from Vatican News. The second reading will be delivered in Spanish by Edgar Pineda. This will be followed by the Universal prayers.
– Before the end of the mass, Cardinal Re will sprinkle the coffin with holy water and incense.
– At the end of the mass, the choir will sing in Latin: “May the angels lead you into paradise; may the martyrs come and welcome you and take you into the holy city, the new and eternal Jerusalem.”
– When the service is over, the coffin will be carried through the “door of death” to the left of the altar at St Peters, while a 10-ton funeral bell tolls.
– Pope Francis’ body will then be carried to his final resting place in St Mary Major Basilica in Rome. This is expected to take around 30 minutes, depending on crowds.
Source: independent.co.uk
