The doors opened at St. Peter's Basilica at 5:40am on Friday, and people soon began to drip to pay tribute to Pope Francis, located beneath the vast dome designed by Michelangelo. A few hours later, Trickle was on the river. Thousands of people passed through the cathedral on their last days, so they were able to say goodbye to the Pope.
Francis' funeral is set for Saturday. He is then buried across the town of the Cathedral of Santa Maria Maggiore, a place of great importance to his heart.
St. Peters has been open nearly 24 hours a day since Francis' body moved here from the Vatican guesthouse where he lived and died Wednesday. The Vatican said 150,000 people had passed by noon Friday.
Depending on the time, waiting to pass the ffin can take hours. “That's normal because so many people loved him,” said Daniela Syrig, who lived in Rome and paid tribute to him on Friday. She said she heard dozens of languages, as well as Italian dialects, while waiting to say goodbye. “Meeting him meant a lot to me. He gave us a lot,” she said.
Outside the cathedral, domestic and international institutions began to restore operations in preparation for funerals. Security measures have been tightened. The roads surrounding Vatican City have begun to be closed in anticipation of the 162 government delegations expected for funerals. The Vatican said Thursday.
Lined up on the streets around the Vatican were lime green vests, civil protection workers and volunteer workers from Red Investment Red Cross workers, ready to deal with immediate emergency situations and provide directions and water bottles. The garbage collector changing plastic bags for garbage cans said their work has increased significantly over the past few days.
Francis passed away on Monday in 1988 in the year of Jubilee, during which millions of faithful people are expected to make pilgrimage to the Vatican. This weekend, teenager Jubilee is scheduled and the bliss of teenager Carlo Akotis, known as the God Influencer, has been postponed, but we'll continue as usual. It was not uncommon to see a group of teenagers among those submitting beyond co on Friday.
“We came for Jubilee,” said Julia Marcheli of Obada, the town of Piedmont in northern Italy. “Instead, we realized we were involved in another event.”
“It was important that mourning was also a historic moment,” said Francisco Martins, the group's leader.
The Vatican said 149 Cardinals had attended the congregation meeting. 36 more than yesterday, and the church prince arrived to elect Francis' successor for the funeral and Conclave. Their next meeting will be Monday morning.
After St. Peter is closed to the public tonight, the wooden ffin lined with zinc will be closed at a formal ceremony.
At the ceremony, we will look at the Cardinals, Vatican officials, Pope Secretaries and other groups of guests as the Pope's face is covered in a white silk veil and sprinkled with holy water. The moderator then places the coffers containing coins created by the Vatican between the Pope of Francis and the canister equipped with “Logito” or acts. The Logito is read aloud during the ceremony, and the rules are written and included in the Pope's funeral book.
Finally, a co decorated with Francis' own cross and his coat of arms is sealed.
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said the co-closure would not be aired.
Cardinal Roger M. Mahoney, a former archbishop of Los Angeles, was accused of hiding cases of priestly sexual abuse and later stripped of several duties, but is one of the Cardinals taking part in the Coffin closure ceremony.
Supporters of abuse victims attacked the decision to allow the Mahoney Cardinal to participate. “The Catholic Church has chosen to carry out a final concealment on known abuse enablers,” Peter, founder of the Survivors Network of People Abused by Priests, said in a statement.
On Friday, for businesses near the Vatican, a faithful influx was a blessing, even if it was alleviated by the sadness of the Pope's passing.
“It was great, Rome is full of people and there's work for everyone,” said Roberto Vaksini, owner of Antica Vinaria, a restaurant and wine bar near the Vatican. “I hope it happens every day. It's not that the Pope dies, of course, but Rome is a tourist town after all.”
