The Vatican says that around 250,000 mourners submitted it through St. Peter’s Basilica Island while lying in the state.
Tens of thousands of people submitted to St. Peters Basilica to pay final respects to Pope Francis on his final day, when he lay in the state before his funeral.
The cathedral has been open for most of Thursday evenings and Friday mornings, closing the door for just three hours overnight.
The long lines meander around St. Peter’s Square and the surrounding roads before passing through the basilica’s centre to the central altar.
People were slowly moving forward, slowly, to get a few minutes inside to pay tribute to Francis.
The body of the 88-year-old Pope, who died in his room at the Santa Marta guesthouse in the Vatican after suffering a stroke Monday, was brought to St. Peters on Wednesday in a strict queue.
Since then, around 250,000 people around the world have said goodbye to the bishop, the Vatican said.
“It’s a very strong feeling to be here,” Patricio Castorio, a Pope-like Argentine visitor, told Reuters. “This parting was very sad, but I would like to thank God for seeing him.
“He was the only pope we had from South America, and the pope who had a lot of good intentions in the Catholic Church,” Castoriota said. “He cleaned up (a lot) of bad things. Maybe not all of that, but he tried.”
Francis, who became Pope in 2013, was the first pope in the Western Hemisphere and was known for his charming and humorous attitude.
His 12 years of Pope had occasionally been turbulent, and Francis was fighting traditionalists who opposed many changes, seeking overhauls of divided institutions.
“He humanizes the church and without a Cralising it,” said Cardinal François Xavier Bustilo, who heads the church in Corsica, France.
Hundreds of disappointed people were turned away when authorities closed St. Peter’s Square before the viewing period ended. Public viewing ended on Friday at 7pm (17:00 GMT). After that, a formal ceremony was held to seal the co-op of the late Pope.
In a report from the Vatican, Hoda Abdel Hamid of Al Jazeera said the Cardinals will support the closure of the Co in a private ceremony.
“Inside the co, each will place 12 coins representing the year of the Pope of Francis, and there will also be a metal tube with paper that describes his pope and heritage,” she said.
The Vatican said a delegation of at least 130 foreigners confirmed attendance at Pope Francis’ funeral on Saturday.
Among foreign leaders, President of the United States Donald Trump heads to Rome for his funeral. This is his second term’s unexpected first foreign trip to face leaders like Ukraine’s Voldymir Zelenki.
One leader who was able to build a bond with Trump, France’s president Emmanuel Macron, and resigning German Prime Minister Olaf Scholz, both will be attending funerals.
Also, Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva and defeated rival Jea Bolsonaro are the veteran leftists who were Trump’s ideological soulmates.
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