Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re presides over the funeral of Pope Francis at St. Peter’s Square, Saturday, April 26, 2025 / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Apr 26, 2025 / 05:32 am (CNA).

Editor’s Note: On April 26, 2025, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, primary celebrant of Pope Francis’ funeral, offered the following homily as published by the Vatican.

In this majestic St. Peter’s Square, where Pope Francis celebrated the Eucharist so many times and presided over great gatherings over the past 12 years, we are gathered with sad hearts in prayer around his mortal remains. Yet, we are sustained by the certainty of faith, which assures us that human existence does not end in the tomb but in the Father’s house, in a life of happiness that will know no end.

On behalf of the College of Cardinals, I cordially thank all of you for your presence. With deep emotion, I extend respectful greetings and heartfelt thanks to the heads of state, heads of government, and official delegations who have come from many countries to express their affection, veneration, and esteem for our late Holy Father.

The outpouring of affection that we have witnessed in recent days following his passing from this earth into eternity tells us how much the profound pontificate of Pope Francis touched minds and hearts.

The final image we have of him, which will remain etched in our memory, is that of last Sunday, Easter Sunday, when Pope Francis, despite his serious health problems, wanted to give us his blessing from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica. He then came down to this square to greet the large crowd gathered for the Easter Mass while riding in the open-top popemobile.

With our prayers, we now entrust the soul of our beloved pontiff to God, that he may grant him eternal happiness in the bright and glorious gaze of his immense love.

We are enlightened and guided by the passage of the Gospel in which the very voice of Christ resounded, asking the first of the apostles: “Peter, do you love me more than these?” Peter’s answer was prompt and sincere: “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you!” Jesus then entrusted him with the great mission: “Feed my sheep.” This will be the constant task of Peter and his successors, a service of love in the footsteps of Christ, our master and lord, who “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mk 10:45).

Despite his frailty and suffering toward the end, Pope Francis chose to follow this path of self-giving until the last day of his earthly life. He followed in the footsteps of his Lord, the Good Shepherd, who loved his sheep to the point of giving his life for them. And he did so with strength and serenity, close to his flock, the Church of God, mindful of the words of Jesus quoted by the Apostle Paul: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).

When Cardinal Bergoglio was elected by the conclave on 13 March 2013 to succeed Pope Benedict XVI, he already had many years of experience in religious life in the Society of Jesus and, above all, was enriched by 21 years of pastoral ministry in the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, first as auxiliary, then as coadjutor and, above all, as archbishop.

The decision to take the name Francis immediately appeared to indicate the pastoral plan and style on which he wanted to base his pontificate, seeking inspiration from the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi.

He maintained his temperament and form of pastoral leadership, and through his resolute personality, immediately made his mark on the governance of the Church. He established direct contact with individuals and peoples, eager to be close to everyone, with a marked attention to those in difficulty, giving himself without measure, especially to the marginalized, the least among us. He was a pope among the people, with an open heart toward everyone. He was also a pope attentive to the signs of the times and what the Holy Spirit was awakening in the Church.

With his characteristic vocabulary and language, rich in images and metaphors, he always sought to shed light on the problems of our time with the wisdom of the Gospel. He did so by offering a response guided by the light of faith and encouraging us to live as Christians amid the challenges and contradictions in recent years, which he loved to describe as an “epochal change.”

He had great spontaneity and an informal way of addressing everyone, even those far from the Church.

Rich in human warmth and deeply sensitive to today’s challenges, Pope Francis truly shared the anxieties, sufferings, and hopes of this time of globalization. He gave of himself by comforting and encouraging us with a message capable of reaching people’s hearts in a direct and immediate way.

His charisma of welcome and listening, combined with a manner of behavior in keeping with today’s sensitivities, touched hearts and sought to reawaken moral and spiritual sensibilities.

Evangelization was the guiding principle of his pontificate. With a clear missionary vision, he spread the joy of the Gospel, which was the title of his first apostolic exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium. It is a joy that fills the hearts of all those who entrust themselves to God with confidence and hope.

The guiding thread of his mission was also the conviction that the Church is a home for all, a home with its doors always open. He often used the image of the Church as a “field hospital” after a battle in which many were wounded; a Church determined to take care of the problems of people and the great anxieties that tear the contemporary world apart; a Church capable of bending down to every person, regardless of their beliefs or condition, and healing their wounds.

His gestures and exhortations in favor of refugees and displaced persons are countless. His insistence on working on behalf of the poor was constant.

It is significant that Pope Francis’ first journey was to Lampedusa, an island that symbolizes the tragedy of emigration, with thousands of people drowning at sea. In the same vein was his trip to Lesbos, together with the ecumenical patriarch and the archbishop of Athens, as well as the celebration of a Mass on the border between Mexico and the United States during his journey to Mexico.

Of his 47 arduous apostolic journeys, the one to Iraq in 2021, defying every risk, will remain particularly memorable. That difficult apostolic journey was a balm on the open wounds of the Iraqi people, who had suffered so much from the inhuman actions of ISIS. It was also an important trip for interreligious dialogue, another significant dimension of his pastoral work. With his 2024 apostolic journey to four countries in Asia-Oceania, the pope reached “the most peripheral periphery of the world.”

Pope Francis always placed the Gospel of mercy at the center, repeatedly emphasizing that God never tires of forgiving us. He always forgives, whatever the situation might be of the person who asks for forgiveness and returns to the right path.

He called for the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy in order to highlight that mercy is “the heart of the Gospel.”

Mercy and the joy of the Gospel are two key words for Pope Francis.

In contrast to what he called “the culture of waste,” he spoke of the culture of encounter and solidarity. The theme of fraternity ran through his entire pontificate with vibrant tones. In his encyclical letter Fratelli Tutti, he wanted to revive a worldwide aspiration to fraternity, because we are all children of the same Father who is in heaven. He often forcefully reminded us that we all belong to the same human family.

In 2019, during his trip to the United Arab Emirates, Pope Francis signed “A Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together,” recalling the common fatherhood of God.

Addressing men and women throughout the world, in his encyclical letter Laudato Si’ he drew attention to our duties and shared responsibility for our common home, stating: “No one is saved alone.”

Faced with the raging wars of recent years, with their inhuman horrors and countless deaths and destruction, Pope Francis incessantly raised his voice imploring peace and calling for reason and honest negotiation to find possible solutions. War, he said, results in the death of people and the destruction of homes, hospitals, and schools. War always leaves the world worse than it was before: It is always a painful and tragic defeat for everyone.

“Build bridges, not walls” was an exhortation he repeated many times, and his service of faith as successor of the Apostle Peter always was linked to the service of humanity in all its dimensions.

Spiritually united with all of Christianity, we are here in large numbers to pray for Pope Francis, that God may welcome him into the immensity of his love.

Pope Francis used to conclude his speeches and meetings by saying: “Do not forget to pray for me.”

Dear Pope Francis, we now ask you to pray for us. May you bless the Church, bless Rome, and bless the whole world from heaven as you did last Sunday from the balcony of this basilica in a final embrace with all the people of God, but also embrace humanity that seeks the truth with a sincere heart and holds high the torch of hope.

Pallbearers carry the wooden coffin of Pope Francis, marked with a cross, into St. Peter's Square for the funeral Mass on April 26, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Vatican City, Apr 26, 2025 / 05:03 am (CNA).

More than 400,000 people filled St. Peter’s Square for the funeral of Pope Francis on Saturday as the world said goodbye to the first Latin American pope who led the Catholic Church for the past 12 years.  

Under the bright Roman sun and amid crowds extending down the Via della Conciliazione, the funeral Mass unfolded within the great colonnade of St. Peter’s Basilica. Heads of state, religious leaders, and pilgrims from across the globe gathered for the historic farewell. 

Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals, presided over the Mass, delivering a homily that paid tribute to Francis’ missionary vision, human warmth, spontaneity, witness to mercy, and “charisma of welcome and listening.” 

“Evangelization was the guiding principle of his pontificate,” Re said.  

Pope Francis “often used the image of the Church as a ‘field hospital’ after a battle in which many were wounded; a Church determined to take care of the problems of people and the great anxieties that tear the contemporary world apart; a Church capable of bending down to every person, regardless of their beliefs or condition, and healing their wounds.” 

As bells tolled solemnly, the funeral rite began with the intonation of the entrance antiphon: “Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him.” 

The late pope’s closed plain wooden coffin lay in front of the altar throughout the Mass. 

“In this majestic St. Peter’s Square, where Pope Francis celebrated the Eucharist so many times and presided over great gatherings over the past 12 years, we are gathered with sad hearts in prayer around his mortal remains,” Re said. 

“With our prayers, we now entrust the soul of our beloved pontiff to God, that he may grant him eternal happiness in the bright and glorious gaze of his immense love,” he added. 

Among the more than 50 heads of state present were U.S. President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump, alongside former President Joe Biden. Also in attendance were Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Argentine President Javier Milei, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, French President Emmanuel Macron, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.  

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva joined the throng of international dignitaries along with representatives of religious traditions from around the world.

Royal families also paid their respects, with Prince William representing King Charles III and Spanish King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia seated near the altar. 

Pilgrims arrived before sunrise to claim their spots in St. Peter’s Square for the Mass with the first in line camping out the night before.  

The funeral followed the Ordo Exsequiarum Romani Pontificis, the official liturgical order for papal funerals, which was updated at Pope Francis’ own request in 2024. Scripture readings included Acts 10:34-43, Philippians 3:20–4:1, Psalm 22, and the Gospel of John 21:15-19 — a passage in which the risen Christ tells Peter: “Feed my sheep.” 

More than 200 cardinals and 750 bishops and priests concelebrated the funeral Mass. More than 4,000 journalists representing 1,800 media outlets reported on the event. All told, the Holy See said more than 250,000 mourners attended.

In his homily, Re reflected on key moments in Pope Francis’ pontificate, from his risk-defying trip to Iraq to visit Christians communities persecuted by the Islamic State to his Mass on the border between Mexico and the United States during his journey to Mexico. 

“Faced with the raging wars of recent years, with their inhuman horrors and countless deaths and destruction, Pope Francis incessantly raised his voice imploring peace and calling for reason and honest negotiation to find possible solutions,” the cardinal said, causing the crowd to erupt in spontaneous applause. 

“Pope Francis always placed the Gospel of mercy at the center, repeatedly emphasizing that God never tires of forgiving us. He forgives, whatever the situation might be of the person who asks for forgiveness and returns to the right path,” Re reflected. “Mercy and the joy of the Gospel are two key words for Pope Francis.” 

The cardinal presided over the final commendation and farewell for Pope Francis, praying: “Dear brothers and sisters, let us commend to God’s tender mercy the soul of Pope Francis, bishop of the Catholic Church, who confirmed his brothers and sisters in the faith of the Resurrection.” 

 “Let us pray to God Our Father through Jesus Christ and in the Holy Spirit; may he deliver him from death, welcome him to eternal peace, and raise up him on the last day,” he said. 

After the crowd chanted the Litany of Saints in Latin, Cardinal Baldassare Reina, vicar general of the Diocese of Rome, offered a final prayer: “O God, faithful rewarder of souls, grant that your departed servant and our bishop, Pope Francis, whom you made successor of Peter and shepherd of your Church, may happily enjoy forever in your presence in heaven the mysteries of your grace and compassion, which he faithfully ministered on earth.”

A poignant moment followed as Eastern Catholic patriarchs, major archbishops, and metropolitans from the “sui iuris” Churches approached the coffin while a choir chanted a Greek prayer from the Byzantine Funeral Office. 

Re blessed the coffin with holy water and incense as the choir sang in Latin: “I know that my Redeemer lives: On the last day I shall rise again.” 

At the end of the Mass, the traditional antiphon “In Paradisum” was sung in Latin, asking for the angels to guide the pope’s soul to heaven.  

“May the angels lead you into paradise; may the martyrs come and welcome you and take you to the holy city, the new and eternal Jerusalem. May choirs of angels welcome you and with Lazarus, who is poor no longer, may you have eternal rest.” 

In keeping with his wishes, Pope Francis will not be buried in the Vatican grottoes alongside his predecessors. Instead, his body will be taken in procession through the streets of Rome in a vehicle to the Basilica of St. Mary Major, a church he visited over 100 times in his lifetime to pray before an icon of the Virgin Mary, “Salus Populi Romani,” particularly before and after his papal journeys. 

In Rome’s most important Marian basilica, Pope Francis will be laid to rest in a simple tomb marked with a single word: Franciscus. 

Remembering Pope Francis 

Jorge Mario Bergoglio was born on Dec. 17, 1936, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and entered the Society of Jesus at age 21. Following his ordination in 1969, he served as a Jesuit provincial, seminary rector, and professor before St. John Paul II appointed him auxiliary bishop of Buenos Aires in 1992. He became archbishop of the Argentine capital in 1998 and was created cardinal in 2001.  

The surprise election of Cardinal Bergoglio on March 13, 2013, at age 76 marked several historic firsts: He became the first Jesuit pope, the first from the Americas, and the first to choose the name Francis, inspired by St. Francis of Assisi’s devotion to poverty, peace, and creation.  

His 12-year pontificate was characterized by a focus on mercy, care for creation, and attention to what he called the “peripheries” of both the Church and society. He made 47 apostolic journeys outside Italy, though he never visited his native Argentina.  

During his tenure, Pope Francis canonized 942 saints — more than any other pope in history — including his predecessors John XXIII, Paul VI, and John Paul II. He published four encyclicals and seven apostolic exhortations while promulgating 75 motu proprio documents.  

Throughout his papacy, Francis significantly reshaped the College of Cardinals through 10 consistories, creating 163 new cardinals. His appointments reflected his vision of a global Church, elevating prelates from the peripheries and creating cardinals in places that had never before had one, including Mongolia and South Sudan.  

Health challenges marked the pope’s final years. He underwent surgery in July 2021 and in June 2023. In November 2023, he suffered from pulmonary inflammation, and in February 2025, he was hospitalized at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital for bronchitis and a respiratory infection.  

His papacy faced unprecedented challenges, including the global COVID-19 pandemic, during which he offered historic moments of prayer for humanity, notably the extraordinary urbi et orbi blessing in an empty St. Peter’s Square in March 2020. He also repeatedly called for peace amid conflicts in Ukraine and the Holy Land.  

Francis convoked four synods, including the Synod on Synodality, whose second session concluded in October 2024. He implemented significant reforms of the Roman Curia and took several steps to address the clergy abuse crisis, including the 2019 motu proprio Vos Estis Lux Mundi. 

Pope Francis’ funeral marks the first day in the Catholic Church’s traditional nine-day mourning period that will include nine days of requiem Masses to be offered for the repose of his soul. 

“Pope Francis used to conclude his speeches and meetings by saying, ‘Do not forget to pray for me,’ Re recalled at the end of his homily. 

“Dear Pope Francis, we now ask you to pray for us. May you bless the Church, bless Rome, and bless the whole world from heaven as you did last Sunday from the balcony of this basilica in a final embrace with all the people of God, but also embrace humanity that seeks the truth with a sincere heart and holds high the torch of hope.” 

Left: Ismael with his friend Dalia, who traveled from Barcelona, Spain. Right: Nadia Trujillo, Ana Asensio, and their friend who joined them from Portugal. / Credit: Ursula Murua/EWTN News

CNA Staff, Apr 25, 2025 / 18:56 pm (CNA).

At 9:45 p.m. Rome time, 12 hours before Pope Francis’ funeral is set to take place, the first of thousands of pilgrims were already lining up along the streets to catch a glimpse of the late pontiff as his body passes by on the way to the Basilica of St. Mary Major — his final burial place. 

Pope Francis’ funeral will take place on April 26 at 10 a.m. Rome time. Following the funeral, his coffin will be taken in a procession to the Basilica of St. Mary Major, where it will be interred. The procession route is set to take approximately half an hour and will pass several historic, Roman landmarks including the Colosseum. 

Sitting on the sidewalk near St. Peter’s Basilica, Ismael is one pilgrim who intends to “camp out” during the night to be present at this historic moment. Ismael, who preferred not to give his last name, came back to the Catholic Church five years ago — thanks to Pope Francis — after leaving for 20 years.

He credited his return to the Church to the pope’s “message of openness and his welcoming of all people,” he told CNA.

“Since I’m so grateful for my return home, that is why I came to say goodbye,” Ismael, who traveled from Barcelona, Spain, said while showing his backpack that had a picture of the pope and the words: “In the Church we all fit, everyone, everyone” and also: “I came back to the Church thanks to you.”

Among the first in line were also pilgrims from Portugal and El Salvador who live in Milan, Italy. Nadia Trujillo wanted to accompany her friend Ana Asensio on a pilgrimage to Rome to pass through the Holy Door of the jubilee and was surprised by the death of the pope.

“We did not expect the death of the pope to happen, and even less so at the moment when Jesus overcomes death. It gives a life lesson because we are all prone to die, but we must keep in mind who died first and gave us the opportunity to be reborn, which is Jesus Christ,” she said.

Trujillo also thanked the Catholic Church for “the spiritual guidance” she has received from its teachings, because without them, she said, “I would not have grown with guidelines that have stopped me from being more of a sinner than I already am — because we’re all sinners.”

Asensio, who made her first Communion last year, said she has gratitude in her heart for the Holy Father.

“I came because I felt it was a personal commitment because I left the Church, but with what the pope has done, I really came back to the Church and last year I made my first Communion and confirmation,” she shared.

A group of African nuns, Disciples of the Sacred Heart, were also among the first in line Friday night.

Despite the tiredness of the pilgrims, the atmosphere around the basilica is lively and pious, with many faithful continuing to arrive ready to stay up all night to attend the pope’s funeral.

Some pray, others sing songs and share words of hope as they wait for the ceremony to begin in the morning. For them, participating in this historic moment is a gesture of love, a way to pay their last respects to the spiritual father who inspired so many.

The casket of Pope Francis rests sealed in St. Peter's Basilica prior to the Holy Father's funeral, Friday, April 25, 2025, / Credit: Vatican Media

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 25, 2025 / 18:36 pm (CNA).

The funeral for Pope Francis, pontiff from March 13, 2013, until his death on April 21, will be held on Saturday morning in St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City.

Saturday’s funeral will kick off the traditional “Novendiales,” nine consecutive days of mourning for the suffrage of the late pope. He will be buried at the Basilica of St. Mary Major.

When and where is the funeral and how can I watch it?

The funeral will begin at 10 a.m. Rome time on Saturday, April 26, which is 4 a.m. Eastern Time, 3 a.m. Central Time, 2 a.m. Mountain Time, and 1 a.m. Pacific Time.

The Vatican has not announced how long the funeral will be, but Pope Benedict XVI’s funeral lasted about one and a half hours and St. John Paul II’s funeral was about three hours long.

Pope Francis’ funeral can be watched on the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) and will be streamed live on EWTN’s YouTube channel.

The funeral will be held on the parvis of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, which is outdoors in front of the basilica.

Who is presiding over the liturgy?

The primary celebrant of Pope Francis’ funeral will be Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals, according to a statement from the Holy See.

Re, a native of Italy, was made a cardinal by Pope John Paul II in 2001. He is 91 years old. He presided over the 2013 papal conclave that elected then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio to the papacy.

The full list of concelebrants is unknown but will include patriarchs, cardinals, archbishops, bishops, and priests from around the world.

Most of the Mass will be said in Latin, but it will also include other languages, such as Italian, English, Polish, and Arabic.

Who will be attending?

The funeral is open to the general public and approximately 200,000 people are expected to attend the service. There will be a heavy security and police presence.

Numerous world leaders have announced they will attend Francis’ funeral, including United States President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Polish President Andrzej Duda.

What will the readings be? 

The Gospel reading for the pontiff’s Mass will be from the 21st chapter of John, when Jesus Christ asked Simon Peter — the first pope — whether he loved him three times and entrusted the faithful to his leadership:

“‘Simon, Son of John, do you love me more than these?’ He said to him, ‘Yes Lord; you know that I love you.’ He said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ He said to him a second time, ‘Simon, Son of John, do you love me?’ He said to him, ‘Yes Lord; you know that I love you.’ He said to him, ‘Tend my sheep.’

“He said to him a third time, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love me?’ … He said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep. Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.’ (This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.)

“And after saying this, he said to him, ‘Follow me.’”

The first reading will be from Chapter 10 in the Acts of the Apostles, in which Peter said: “He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

The second reading will be from St. Paul’s Letter to Philippians, in which the apostle said “our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.”

‘In Paradisum’ antiphon

After the Mass, the antiphon “In Paradisum” will be sung, which prays for the angels to guide the pope into heaven.

“May angels lead you into paradise; upon your arrival, may the martyrs receive you and lead you to the holy city of Jerusalem. May the ranks of angels receive you, and with Lazarus, the poor man, may you have eternal rest.”

Sealing of the coffin

On the eve of the funeral, on Friday at 8 p.m. local time, Cardinal Kevin Farrell presided over the sealing of the coffin. The sealing of the coffin marked the end of the time in which the public could view the mortal remains of the Holy Father. 

The pope is in a simple wooden coffin lined with zinc, and his face was covered in a silk veil, in accordance with the new papal funeral rite approved by him during his papacy. The previous standards called for three coffins: one of cypress, one of lead, and one of oak.

9 days of mourning and burial

The pope’s funeral marks the first day of the nine days of mourning, known as the “Novendiales.”

Over this period, a requiem Mass will be celebrated in St. Peter’s Basilica each night. A different cardinal will preside over each Mass. Those cardinals were chosen by Francis before his death or serve in key Vatican offices.

Each Mass will be focused on a specific subset of the faithful. The Holy See has confirmed that the Sunday Mass will be focused on the Jubilee of Teenagers, which will be celebrated by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

Francis will be buried at the Basilica of St. Mary Major, which is a break from the recent papal tradition of being buried in the Vatican grottoes. The burial location is in accordance with the wishes the Holy Father publicized prior to his death. 

Thousands of Catholics said their last goodbyes and paid their respects to Pope Francis on Wednesday, April 23, 2025, as the late pope lay in state in St. Peter’s Basilica. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA

Vatican City, Apr 25, 2025 / 17:56 pm (CNA).

Among the more than 250,000 people who made their way to the Vatican this week were the nocturnal pilgrims wanting to catch a final glimpse of Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Basilica before his Saturday funeral.   

To host the streams of pilgrims in mourning to St. Peter’s Basilica, the Vatican extended opening hours — with the support of thousands of jubilee and Civil Protection volunteers — to allow visitors to pay their last respects to the late pontiff past midnight. 

Throughout the week several mourners gathered at various entry points surrounding the Vatican after sundown during the week to pay their final respects to the late leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.

“When it became known that it would be possible to pray before the pope in St. Peter’s on Wednesday, I immediately thought of going that same day in the evening, after work, because I assumed that as the days went by, more and more people would arrive,” Isabel Troconis told CNA on Friday.

After passing through the Vatican’s security checkpoints and a two-hour wait within St. Peter’s Square, Troconis said she was moved to see so many people come to see the Holy Father on the first day and evening of his public viewing.

“What impressed me most was the variety of people gathered there: families, workers, and tourists from Italy and all over the world; business people and immigrant workers; ordinary and extravagant people; even non-Christian religious figures like a group of Buddhist monks who were walking in silence and very recollected,” she shared. 

Reflecting on the legacy of Pope Francis and the diversity of people who have come to see him “has reminded us that God’s love is not only universal but also concrete and personal: that he is always concerned about each person, especially those most in need,” Troconis said. 

For Laura Pérez, St. Peter’s Basilica is “more beautiful” at night and the evening darkness creates a more conducive atmosphere for prayer and contemplation, she said.

Coming to St. Peter’s Basilica after work on Thursday was the only time she and her group of friends could pass through the jubilee Holy Door and say goodbye to the “joyful and humble” pope who “lived the Gospel” and inspired others to do the same. 

“At some point we started reading the reflection that Pope Francis made for the World Youth Day in Lisbon, like ‘Mary arose and went with haste (Lk 1:39),’” she told CNA on Friday.   

“We were meditating on his words because it was a way of honoring him,” she said. “For young people, he left a lot of messages that are very encouraging, that are very comforting, and that speak to us.”

“It spoke a lot to me to be there [at St. Peter’s Basilica] at night,” she added.

Italian President Sergio Mattarella and his daughter pay their respects to Pope Francis at an early viewing on April 22, 2025, before the late pope is transferred to St. Peter’s Basilica to lie in state. / Credit: Vatican Media

ACI Prensa Staff, Apr 25, 2025 / 17:36 pm (CNA).

The following leaders from around the world are among the dignitaries who have announced they will attend Pope Francis’ funeral on Saturday, April 26, at the Vatican:

Javier Milei, president of Argentina, homeland of Pope Francis

Donald Trump, president of the United States, and his wife and first lady, Melania Trump

Former U.S. president Joe Biden and his wife, former first lady Jill Biden

Bajram Begaj, president of Albania

Joâo Manuel Gonçalves, president of Angola

Vahagn Khachaturyan, president of Armenia

Sam Mostyn, governor general of Australia

Christian Stocker, chancellor of Austria

Muhammad Yunus, chief adviser of Bangladesh

Bart De Wever, prime minister of Belgium

Froyla Tzalam, governor general of Belize

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, president of Brazil

Zeljka Cvijanović, chairman of the presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Mary Simon, governor general of Canada

Jose Maria Neves, president of Cape Verde

Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, prime minister of Qatar

Faustin-Archange Touadera, president of the Central African Republic

Manuel José Ossandon, senator of Chile

Chin-Jen Chen, former vice president of China

Zoran Milanovic, president of Croatia

Salvador Valdés Mesa, vice president of Cuba

Nikos Christodoulides, president of Cyprus

Petr Fiala, prime minister of the Czech Republic

Felix Tshisekedi, president of the Democratic Republic of Congo

Luis Abinader, president of the Dominican Republic

Jose Ramos-Horta, president of East Timor

Daniel Noboa, president of Ecuador

Félix Ulloa Garay, vice president of El Salvador

Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, vice president of Equatorial Guinea

Alar Karis, president of Estonia

Alexander Stubb, president of Finland

Emmanuel Macron, president of France

Brice Nguema, president of Gabon

Mikheil Kavelashvili, president of Georgia

Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Olaf Scholz, president and chancellor of Germany

Kyriakos Mitsotakis, prime minister of Greece

Xiomara Castro, president of Honduras.

Tamas Sulyok and Viktor Orbán, president and prime minister of Hungary

Halla Tómasdóttir, president of Iceland

Droupadi Murmu, president of India

Nechirvan Barzani, president of Kurdistan Region in Iraq

Micheal D. Higgins and Micheal Martin, president and prime minister of Ireland

Sergio Mattarella and Giorgia Meloni, president and prime minister of Italy

Yaron Sideman, ambassador of Israel

William Samoei Ruto, president of Kenya

Edgars Rinkevics, president of Latvia

Joseph Khalil Aoun, president of Lebanon

Gitanas Nauseda, president of Lithuania

Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova, president of Macedonia

Andry Rajoelina, president of Madagascar

Myriam Spiteri Debono, president of Malta

Rosa Icela Rodríguez, secretary of the interior of Mexico

Maia Sandu, president of Moldova

Jakov Milatović, president of Montenegro

Aziz Akhannouch, prime minister of Morocco

Daniel Chapo, president of Mozambique

Dick Schoof, prime minister of the Netherlands

Christopher Luxon, prime minister of New Zealand.

Mohamed Mustafa, prime minister of Palestine

Raúl Latorre, president of the chamber of deputies of Paraguay

Ferdinand Marcos Jr., president of the Philippines

Andrzej Duda, president of Poland

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and Luis Montenegro, president and prime minister of Portugal

Ilie Bolojan, interim president of Romania

Denise Bronzetti, captain regent of San Marino

Duro Macut, prime Minister of Serbia

Wavel Ramkalawan, president of Seychelles

Julius Maada Bio, president of Sierra Leone

Peter Pellegrini, president of Slovakia

Natasa Pirc Musar and Robert Golob, president and prime minister of Slovenia

Ulf Kristersson, prime minister of Sweden

Karin Keller-Sutter, president of Switzerland

Philip Isdor Mpango, vice president of Tanzania

Faure Gnassingbé, president of Togo

Numan Kurtulmus, speaker of the national assembly of Turkey

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, president of Ukraine

Keir Starmer, prime minister of the United Kingdom

Antonio Guterres, secretary-general of the United Nations

Constantino Chiwenga, vice president of Zimbabwe

Foreign ministers 

The foreign ministers from Algeria, Burkina Faso, Japan, Mali, Mongolia, Namibia, Norway, Peru, South Sudan, Tunisia, Sri Lanka, Uruguay, Venezuela, and Zambia will attend.

Monarchs 

Royals include: 

King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium

Queen Mary of Denmark

Prince William of Wales will attend in place of his father, King Charles III of England

King Abdullah II of Jordan

King Letsie III of Lesotho

Prince Alois and Princess Sophie of Liechtenstein

Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg

Prince Albert and Princess Charlene of Monaco

Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit will attend on behalf of King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway

King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain

King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Swede

Leaders of international institutions

Bjorn Berge, secretary-general of the Council of Europe

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission

Roberta Metsola, president of the European Parliament

Antonio Costa, president of the council of the European Union

Kaja Callas, high representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs

Álvaro Lario, president of the International Fund for Agricultural Development

Pia Kauma, president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the United Nations

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Pope Francis’ coffin is sealed prior to his funeral at St. Peter’s Basilica on Friday, April 25, 2025. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Apr 25, 2025 / 16:26 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis’ coffin was closed and sealed in St. Peter’s Basilica in a private ceremony on Friday evening after more than 250,000 people paid their final respects to the late pope over three days of public visitation.

Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the camerlengo, presided over the rite of the closing and sealing of the coffin, which was attended by cardinals of the Roman Curia, the pope’s secretaries, and several of his relatives.

Priests of the Chapter of St. Peter, a group responsible for the liturgical and sacramental care of St. Peter’s Basilica, will keep vigil over the late pontiff’s coffin during the night of April 25 until the funeral Mass in St. Peter’s Square on the morning of April 26.

The liturgy, which lasted one hour, began with the reading of the “rogito,” a two-page summary in Latin of Francis’ life and papacy.

The choir chanted the Canticle of Zachariah, there was a moment for silent prayer, and then Farrell read a prayer in Latin asking the Lord that Pope Francis’ face, “which scrutinized your ways to show them to the Church, now see your fatherly face.”

Following the prayer, Archbishop Diego Giovanni Ravelli, the Vatican’s lead master of ceremonies for papal liturgies, covered Pope Francis’ face in a white silk veil. Farrell sprinkled holy water on the late pontiff’s body, and then Ravelli placed inside the coffin a copy of the “rogito,” rolled up inside a metal cylinder and sealed, and a bag with the coins minted during Francis’ pontificate.

First the interior coffin of zinc was closed and sealed. A cross, Pope Francis’ coat of arms, and a plaque with his papal name, the length of his life — 88 years, four months, and four days — and the length of his pontificate — 12 years, one month, and eight days — was visible on the outside of the zinc coffin. 

Then, the outer wooden coffin, which featured a cross and the coat of arms of Francis, was closed.

The rite concluded with the singing of psalms and antiphons, including the Marian antiphon for the Easter season, the Regina Caeli.

After the funeral Mass on April 26, Pope Francis’ remains will be brought from the Vatican through Rome to the Basilica of St. Mary Major, where he will be buried in another private ceremony.

Members of Civil Protection at the Vatican. / Credit: Victoria Cardiel/EWTN News

Vatican City, Apr 25, 2025 / 15:19 pm (CNA).

More than 1,800 Italian Civil Protection volunteers are currently deployed around St. Peter’s Basilica and throughout central Rome to coordinate and facilitate the flow of pilgrims paying their final respects to Pope Francis.

“Our task is to provide assistance to the pilgrims, information on where to go, access routes to the basilica, distribute bottles of water if the sun is out, and help people as much as possible,” explained volunteer Alessandro Saletta.

Italy is preparing extensively to welcome monarchs, heads of state and government, and other political representatives from around the world who will attend the funeral in St. Peter’s Square.

More than 130 international delegations have confirmed their attendance. In addition, 50 heads of state and 10 monarchs are expected.

“We at Civil Protection are assisting mostly in the Vatican area, while Italian security forces, such as the Carabinieri, the army, and the fire department, are monitoring the most sensitive areas, such as Termini station and Fiumicino airport,” Saletta explained.

The impressive security measures for Pope Francis’ funeral include the deployment of some 4,000 police officers as well as snipers, agents with expertise in detecting explosives, a no-fly zone, and exhaustive checks at airports and train and bus stations.

According to the latest figures released by the Vatican, since Wednesday nearly 250,000 people have filed through St. Peter’s Basilica where the pope, who died on Monday at the age of 88, lies in state. The public viewing ended at 7 p.m. Rome time Friday.

The funeral Mass will begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday, April 26. Once completed, the Vatican has scheduled a procession of the coffin with the pope’s remains, which will leave St. Peter’s Basilica and proceed to St. Mary Major Basilica, where the pontiff will be buried at ground level in a tomb designed with great simplicity.

The route for the funeral cortege, which represents one of the greatest organizational challenges for the Italian authorities, will pass by iconic sites such as the Roman Colosseum and will be cordoned off on both sides of the road to safely allow the faithful who wish to do so to pay their last respects.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Religious sisters gather to pray the rosary for Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Monday, April 21, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

CNA Staff, Apr 25, 2025 / 11:45 am (CNA).

Throughout his papacy, Francis took steps to appoint and integrate women into leadership roles in the Vatican. From the time he took office in 2013, the number of female employees working in the Vatican increased from about 850 at the beginning of Francis’ papacy to nearly 1,200 in 2023, according to a report by Vatican News. 

As of 2023, more than 1 in 4 employees of the Roman Curia — the group of bureaus that support the pope in governing the Church — are women.

While increasing the opportunities for women in the Church, Pope Francis consistently maintained the Catholic teaching that the priesthood is reserved for men. Francis said the Church needed to preserve its masculine “Petrine principle” in regards to ministry as well as its feminine, spousal nature, which he called the “Marian principle.” Notably, Francis believed women were highly capable of participating directly in the Church, especially in an “administrative way.” He said women make better managers than men and “have been running things since the Garden of Eden.”

In a 2022 interview, Francis spoke of the dignity of women as reflecting the spousal, feminine nature of the Church.

“A Church with only the Petrine principle would be a Church that one would think is reduced to its ministerial dimension, nothing else,” he said. “But the Church is more than a ministry. It is the whole people of God. The Church is woman. The Church is a spouse. Therefore, the dignity of women is mirrored in this way.” 

In March 2022, the pope established in Praedicate Evangelium (“Preach the Gospel”) that any member of the faithful could be eligible to lead a Vatican dicastery. 

Women became voting members in a 2023 synod for the first time in the Church’s history. The pope also opened to women “full membership” roles in the Vatican dicasteries — previously reserved for cardinals and bishops. In January, Pope Francis marked another milestone in his pontificate by appointing Sister Simona Brambilla, the first-ever woman to head a Vatican dicastery — the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.  

As the Church reflects on Francis’ legacy and the confidence he placed in women to help lead the Church, CNA took a closer look at four religious sisters appointed to some of the highest-ranking leadership roles in the Vatican. 

First-ever woman to lead a dicastery 

In January, Sister Simona Brambilla became the first woman to head a Vatican dicastery. 

As prefect of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, she  oversees about 700,000 religious men and women throughout the world.

Brambilla, 60, is a member of the Consolata Missionaries religious order and served as superior general of the order for more than a decade. She was a missionary sister in Mozambique in the late 1990s and as a professional nurse taught at the Pontifical Gregorian University in its Institute of Psychology.

Pope Francis appointed Brambilla in December 2024 as a member of the Ordinary Council of the General Secretariat of the Synod, which helps prepare the ordinary general assembly of the Synod of Bishops. In July 2019, she — alongside six other women — became the first female members of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. She later became secretary of the dicastery. 

When asked about her appointment as secretary in a 2024 interview, Brambilla said that for peace to grow, it “needs the fertility of a primordial soil: the healthy, good, trusting, respectful, reverent, tender, and vital relationship between man and woman.”

“A bit as it must have been at the beginning of time, in that garden in which God loved to walk in the breeze of the day, looking for the man and the woman, his blessed image,” Brambilla said. 

Brambilla works with a cardinal who serves as pro-prefect, an unprecedented structure in the Holy See. Church law calls for ordination to carry out certain governing powers. 

Pope Francis made it possible for laypeople including women to lead a dicastery — a role previously reserved for cardinals and archbishops — in the apostolic constitution Praedicate Evangelium in 2022.

Vatican City’s first female governor 

At the beginning of 2025, Pope Francis appointed Franciscan religious sister Raffaella Petrini as president of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and governor of Vatican City State, making her the first woman to ever hold the position.

Petrini served as secretary of both institutions since November 2021 — a second-ranking role in which she oversaw administrative offices, the police department, museums, and other services in Vatican City.

In her new role, Petrini reports directly to the pope and manages the Vatican budget and finance. As president of the Governorate of Vatican City, she runs the executive body of the papal city and leads the pontifical commission. She is the legislative authority of the city state. The governorate encompasses security and public order, health, economic issues, and infrastructure as well as the Vatican Museums and the Pontifical Swiss Guard. 

Petrini, a member of the Franciscan Sisters of the Eucharist, replaced Cardinal Fernando Vérgez in the role beginning on March 1.

Petrini, 56, is a professor with both academic and administrative experience. She was born in Rome on Jan. 15, 1969, and graduated with a degree in political science from the Guido Carli International University of Studies. She has a doctorate from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in social sciences, where she has taught economics and the sociology of economic processes.  

From 2005 to 2021, Petrini worked at the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, which was responsible for missionary work. 

Pope Francis announced Petrini’s appointment in January during an interview, where he said: “Women know how to manage things better than us” and shared how “we now have many women” in leadership roles in the Vatican.  

Pioneering woman in key social development role

In August 2021, Pope Francis appointed Italian economist and Catholic religious sister Alessandra Smerilli to a second-ranking position in the Vatican’s social development office — one of the highest posts ever held by a woman at the Holy See. 

Smerilli, a Salesian Sister of Don Bosco, was appointed “ad interim” secretary of the Vatican’s social development office, the dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development. 

The office helps promote Catholic social teaching around the world by addressing various social justice issues including human rights, the safeguarding of creation, human trafficking, and other charitable works.  

The 50-year-old Salesian sister is an economist and professor. She has been an undersecretary at the human development dicastery since March 24, 2021, and was one of the principal organizers of the 2020 Economy of Francesco event. 

When asked in 2024 by Angelus News about women in leadership in the Church, Smerilli said: “We need both men and women in order to have a more complete picture and a different perspective on the reality we face.”

Since 2019, Smerilli has also served as a councilor of the Vatican City State and a consultant to the secretariat of the Synod of Bishops. In spring 2020, she was asked to coordinate the economic task force of the Vatican COVID-19 Commission.

Forbes’ ‘most influential religious sister’ 

French religious sister Nathalie Becquart became the highest-ranking woman to ever work in the Synod of Bishops after Pope Francis appointed her to the second-ranking position in February 2021. 

Becquart became the first woman undersecretary of the Synod of Bishops, the advisory body to the pope himself. She went on to become the first woman to be a voting member in a Catholic synod, which is usually made up of bishops, priests, and some religious men, and Becquart was among many women who actively participated in the 2023 and 2024 Synod on Synodality.

Becquart holds a master’s degree in entrepreneurship from the HEC business school in Paris. Before she joined the Xavière Sisters at age 26 in 1995, she worked as a marketing consultant. 

In 2024, the magazine featured Becquart in its Forbes Most Influential Women “50 over 50” list, calling her “the highest-ranking woman in the Vatican.”

Because of her extensive background in youth ministry, Becquart was involved in the preparation for the Synod of Bishops on young people, faith, and vocational discernment in 2018 and was general coordinator of a pre-synod meeting, taking part as an auditor. 

Before her 2021 appointment, Becquart worked in the Synod of Bishops as a consultant to the general secretariat beginning in 2019. From 2012 to 2018, she oversaw the French bishops’ National Service for the Evangelization of Youth and for Vocations, a program designed to evangelize young people and cultivate a culture of vocations.

The tomb of Pope Francis in the Basilica of St. Mary Major. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Apr 25, 2025 / 11:15 am (CNA).

Pope Francis’ tomb is made of Ligurian (Italian) marble with the sole inscription “FRANCISCUS” and a reproduction of his pectoral cross, according to new details released by the Vatican.

The burial place is located in the niche of the side aisle, between the Pauline Chapel (Chapel of Our Lady of Health of the Roman People) and the Sforza Chapel in St. Mary Major Basilica. It is also located near the altar dedicated to St. Francis. 

Work to receive Pope Francis’ coffin began a few days ago, fulfilling the pontiff’s wish for a simple burial in this church dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

In his autobiography, “Hope,” published earlier this year, Pope Francis made it clear that his burial place upon his death would be St. Mary Major Basilica.

“The Vatican is the home of my final service, not that of eternity. I will be in the room where the candelabras are now kept, close to that Queen of Peace, whose help I have always asked and by whom I have let myself be embraced during my pontificate more than a hundred times,” he stated.

“I thought they were going to bury him inside the crypt of the basilica, but it’s here,” said Valentina, one of the members of the faithful who visited the church.

She’s from Rome and pointed out that, with this gesture, Pope Francis wanted to seal his relationship with the Eternal City of which he was bishop.

Beside her, her husband, Francesco, said that during the Mass they attended a few minutes ago, they heard “the sounds of the workers at work.”

“The pope wanted to be buried at ground level and without ornamentation. It’s another example of the humility he has demonstrated throughout his 12 years of pontificate,” she noted.

The tomb is very close to the chapel of the “Salus Populi Romani” (“Health of the Roman People”), the Marian devotion where the pope regularly went to pray.

Antonieta, who said she was the same age as Pope Francis at 88, also came to the church to pray for the pontiff before a copy of the image of their shared, favorite Marian devotion.

The Holy Father entrusted all his apostolic journeys to Mary under this title every time he left from or returned to the Vatican.

He confided his concerns to her but also his physical pain. During the four times he was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, he wanted to offer his suffering to the Virgin Mary. He also did so at other difficult times, such as the pandemic.

“He had a great devotion to this church, and it wasn’t unusual to see him praying before its icon. His devotion is contagious and now, although I live near the Vatican and used to go to St. Peter’s, I often come to Mass here,” Antonieta said.

For Antonieta, also an octogenarian, the three kilometers (close to two miles) separating the Vatican basilica from St. Mary Major are no problem. The cortege accompanying the pope’s coffin will travel that same route after the funeral on Saturday, April 26.

But in addition to housing the Byzantine icon “Salus Populi Romani,” few know, for example, that St. Ignatius of Loyola also chose St. Mary Major to celebrate his first Mass as a priest. He later founded the Society of Jesus, for which this basilica was very important. In the aftermath of the Protestant revolt, the Marian image became a symbol of identity that clearly demonstrated adherence to the pope.

St. Mary Major Basilica also houses the remains of the architect and sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini, one of the greatest exponents of Baroque art, and Pauline, the sister of the French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. Starting Saturday, they will share their final resting place with Pope Francis.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.