Rome, Italy – On Saturday morning, around 250,000 grieving individuals in Vatican City fell silent as the funeral for Pope Francis commenced.
The church choir’s melodies resonated through speakers set up across the city-state. Many bowed their heads in reverence, while others brought their hands together in quiet prayer.
Just after 10 am (08:00 GMT), the pope’s coffin was taken out of St. Peter’s Basilica. For most of the crowd, who were too far away to see, attention shifted to large screens placed in St. Peter’s Square.
With police officers, stewards, and military personnel having managed crowds in cordoned streets since early morning, the gentle strains of a prayer song turned the tense atmosphere into a moment of shared tranquility.
As readings began in multiple languages, groups of teenagers who had come to Rome for the Jubilee of Adolescents, a key event in the Catholic Church held every 25 years, sat on the cobblestones of Via della Conciliazione leading to the square.
Some sought out shaded areas along the street to escape the warm midday sun.
Unified in Love and Prayer
Pauline Mille, a French doctoral student who arrived early with her parents, described the ceremony as moving. She expressed that it was “wonderful to hear people singing in unison and gathering together” to honor the pope’s legacy.
Lebanese American Elie Dib traveled to Rome with his wife and young son to witness the canonization of Carlo Acutis, which was postponed due to Francis’s passing on Monday.
Dib shared with Al Jazeera that he felt “blessed to participate in the prayer and funeral today to honor his soul,” and he was touched by the sight of people from various nationalities uniting “in one voice of love and prayer.”
His son, Antony, who was perched on his father’s shoulders draped in a Lebanese flag, expressed that although he felt sorrow over the pope’s death, he was “still happy that he is going to heaven.”
In the heart of the square, a group of teenagers from Mexico knelt with their heads bowed, hands resting on each other’s shoulders.
As the ceremony concluded, mourners gradually exited the Vatican, with stewards distributing free water to senior attendees.
The popemobile carrying Francis’s coffin departed the city-state, traveling through Rome past iconic landmarks like the Colosseum, on its way to the Basilica of Saint Mary Major, located a few kilometers away.
Profound Messages of Love
As approximately 50 heads of state, 12 reigning monarchs, and other distinguished guests filed out of private exits in motorcades, tens of thousands of mourners began the hour-long walk to the pope’s resting place.
Fiorello Maffei, a 58-year-old resident of London, had returned to Italy for Carlo’s now-postponed canonization. He described the funeral as “very touching,” filled with simple yet profound messages of love that still “held significant weight.”
He remarked on how this simplicity characterized Francis, who communicated without complicating his messages, and he appreciated that world leaders like former U.S. President Donald Trump had to absorb these calls for peace.
Two priests from Benin attending the funeral alongside clergy from South Africa felt sadness during the service, but also a sense of hope, grateful for the legacy left by Francis.
Watching the pope’s coffin paraded through Rome on a large screen near the Tiber, they noted that Francis preached of peace and inclusivity, welcoming migrants and refugees with an “open heart.”
Maffei reflected that Francis would have found joy in seeing so many people walking through Rome, even tackling the uphill stretch by Largo Magnanapoli.
“This walk is no easy task. It’s a moment for reflection and meditation, just as he would have wished,” Maffei noted.
At the Basilica of Saint Mary Major, a church cherished by the pope, known for his visits exceeding 100 times throughout his 12-year papacy, the crowd began to diminish as there were no organized public ceremonies for his burial.
On Sunday, the pontiff’s tomb was opened to the public.
The simple white sarcophagus, inscribed only with “Franciscus” in Latin, reflects the pope’s wish to be laid to rest “in the ground, without elaborate decoration.”
