Pope Francis I will be buried with a touching note commemorating the “simple” life he led during his 13 years as pontiff, it has been revealed. The late leader of the Catholic Church’s shock death aged 88 on Easter Monday, just weeks after he was discharged from Rome’s Gemelli hospital following a bout of double pneumonia, has resulted in an outpouring of affection from around the world.
Vatican City representatives have revealed 200,000 people were present in the microstate for his funeral this morning, during which service leader Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals, commemorated his Pontificate as one that “touched minds and hearts”. He will be buried with a document bearing similar words remembering the “simple and much-loved shepherd” this afternoon.
The Pope will be buried in Santa Maria Maggiore, a basilica in central Rome the Pontiff frequented before his death, in a wooden coffin lined with zinc. Placed on his body before it was sealed on Friday was a page-long biographical obituary remembering the “simple and much-loved shepherd” who was “one of the people”.
The note adds that he “travelled far and wide across the city on the underground and the bus, cooking his own meals because he felt one of the people”.
After adding the late Pope would “remain in the heart of the Church and of humanity”, the obituary closed remembering the man who left a “wonderful testimony of humanity”, saying: “Francis has left everyone a wonderful testimony of humanity, life of a saint and universal fatherhood.”
The obituary was placed in a metal canister and sealed with his body inside the zinc-lined coffin, the lid of which carried his name, a cross and two coats of arms – one of his own and another of the papacy.
The page-long account was read out during his funeral by Cardinal Re during the service before he was carried to the basilica where he has now been laid to rest. The Santa Maria Maggiore basilica was chosen by the late Pope as one where he would “always stop to pray”.
In his final testament, the Pope said: “I wish my final earthly journey to end precisely in this ancient Marian sanctuary, where I would always stop to pray at the beginning and end of every Apostolic Journey, confidently entrusting my intentions to the Immaculate Mother, and giving thanks for her gentle and maternal care.”
The Pope also asked his tomb be “prepared in the burial niche in the side aisle between the Pauline Chapel (Chapel of the Salus Populi Romani) and the Sforza Chapel of the Basilica”.
The testament added: “The tomb should be in the ground; simple, without particular ornamentation, bearing only the inscription: Franciscus. May the Lord grant a fitting reward to all those who have loved me and who continue to pray for me. The suffering that has marked the final part of my life, I offer to the Lord, for peace in the world and for fraternity among peoples.”
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