Pope Benedict XVI funeral: Live updates - The Washington Post

World leaders person paid tribute to Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, with immoderate successful attendance astatine the funeral, including King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium, Italy’s caller premier minister, Giorgia Meloni, erstwhile queen Sofia of Spain, and dozens of planetary ambassadors.

President Biden, a Catholic, said soon aft Benedict’s decease that helium would beryllium “remembered arsenic a renowned theologian, with a beingness of devotion to the Church.”

Ireland’s leader, Leo Varadkar tweeted of Benedict: “The lad of a constabulary serviceman & a cook, the archetypal German elected arsenic Pope successful 1,000 years, helium was yet a ‘humble idiosyncratic successful vineyard of the Lord.’”

Pope Francis’s homily, 1 of the cardinal moments of the Mass, was steeped successful verse, without galore idiosyncratic touches, and nary notation to his predecessor by sanction until the past sentence: “Benedict, faithful person of the Bridegroom, whitethorn your joyousness beryllium implicit arsenic you perceive his voice, present and forever!”

In the homily, Francis paid tribute to Benedict much elliptically, invoking a fig who spent his beingness “holding accelerated to the Lord’s past words.” He besides quoted a explanation of emotion that Benedict had utilized astatine the opening of his pontificate.

The past clip a pope died, successful 2005, it prompted 1 of the largest gatherings of mourning successful the past of organized religion. There were astatine slightest 300,000 radical successful St. Peter’s Square, including leaders from much than 70 countries. But John Paul II was a monumental pope, who reigned for 26 years, traveled to 129 countries extracurricular Italy and provided a spiritual instauration for the combat against Communism. Catholics chanted, “Santo subito!” — “Sainthood now!” — adjacent earlier helium was buried.

But there’s a large quality betwixt dying arsenic pope and dying arsenic an ex-pope. And the decease of Benedict, who led the religion for 8 years earlier retiring, has drawn little of a planetary outpouring than for his predecessor. The Vatican’s spokesperson said the ceremonial would beryllium “simple.” Only 2 delegations — from Italy and Benedict’s autochthonal Germany — are officially attending. Other countries were invited to nonstop representatives, though. An unofficial moving count, shared Wednesday among journalists who screen the Vatican, listed heads of authorities from 7 countries (Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Slovenia, Togo and Hungary), arsenic good arsenic 4 premier ministers.

22 min ago

Rome bureau main covering confederate Europe and sometimes parts beyond

Francis’s homily for Benedict XVI is definite to gully comparisons with Benedict (then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger’s) homily for the ceremonial of John Paul II. Comparatively, Ratzinger’s went into overmuch deeper item connected his predecessor’s accomplishments, mixing aboriginal biography with verse, and summing up John Paul’s beingness mission. Some accidental that code helped vault Ratzinger into the pontificate.

39 min ago

Rome bureau main covering confederate Europe and sometimes parts beyond

A sitting pope presiding implicit the ceremonial Mass for his predecessor marks a historical infinitesimal for the religion — though it was Benedict, past known arsenic Joseph Ratzinger and serving arsenic the dean of the College of Cardinals, who led the ceremonial Mass for his predecessor, Pope John Paul II.

Along with hundreds of cardinals and thousands of Catholic devotees, the ceremonial of Benedict XVI is besides a multifaith affair.

Delegations of radical from the Jewish religion arsenic good arsenic Muslim and Buddhist leaders successful Rome attended the ceremonial successful a motion of solidarity connected Thursday.

The Catholic Church is followed by astir 1.3 cardinal radical globally, and some Pope Francis and his precocious predecessor person visited non-Christian-majority countries successful a bid to foster interfaith relations.

With immoderate 125 cardinals successful spot to 1 broadside of the altar, the ceremonial for the 265th pope is present beginning. Pope Francis is celebrating the Mass aft having been wheeled into place. The quadrate is affluent with organ and choir music.

In 1 of the opening prayers, Francis, referencing Benedict, said: “We commune that having served arsenic the vicar of your lad connected earth, helium whitethorn beryllium welcomed by him into eternal glory.”

1 hr ago

Rome bureau main covering confederate Europe and sometimes parts beyond

For anyone who needs a basal primer connected the colors connected show today, bishops are successful purple, and cardinals are successful red. And, yes, that’s the pope successful white.

About 45 minutes earlier the ceremonial began, bells dilatory tolled, and 12 white-gloved pallbearers brought the cypress coffin into the presumption of the crowd, placing it connected a level successful beforehand of the altar. People successful attendance offered brushed applause arsenic the coffin was acceptable successful place.

Monsignor Diego Ravelli and Archbishop Georg Gänswein, Benedict’s longtime idiosyncratic secretary, past placed the Book of the Gospels connected apical of the casket. Gänswein kissed the casket earlier walking away.

1 hr ago

Rome bureau main covering confederate Europe and sometimes parts beyond

Subdued vibe successful the Vatican close now. The assemblage is large — but not huge. Twenty minutes earlier the commencement of the funeral, determination is inactive plentifulness of abstraction successful St. Peter’s Square. Even 1 thoroughfare distant from the Vatican, determination is nary motion that a immense lawsuit is taking place.

The bells astatine St. Peter’s Basilica did not toll for the decease of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, thing that would hap lone for the decease of a sitting pope, a Vatican spokesperson said.

Although helium was laid retired successful reddish for a nationalist viewing, the Vatican’s quality tract noted that helium was lying successful authorities without a pallium, a vestment that would not beryllium utilized for a “retired prelate.”

The accepted nine-day mourning period, oregon “novemdiales,” volition not observed aft his burial, the Vatican said.

Of course, immoderate customs aren’t adjacent relevant. There was nary request this week to destruct the “ring of the fisherman” that doubles arsenic a papal seal — Benedict’s customized ringing was slashed to marque it unusable erstwhile helium stepped down successful 2013. And determination won’t beryllium the play of a conclave to prime his successor arsenic pope. That’s already happened, too.

The bells are tolling dilatory astatine St. Peter’s arsenic the assemblage builds. The gathering throngs clapped arsenic the coffin was placed successful beforehand of the altar.

It is incredibly foggy successful Rome today, making for an eerie environment. Approaching the elephantine basilica, the cupola is shrouded successful fog, intolerable to see.

Benedict, past 85, said helium had “repeatedly examined my conscience earlier God” and concluded that the modern world, “subject to truthful galore accelerated changes and shaken by questions of heavy relevance for the beingness of faith,” required a pope successful amended carnal and intelligence condition. “My strengths, owed to an precocious age, are nary longer suited” to the papacy, helium said.

His papacy was facing aggregate crises astatine the time. Documents leaked by his erstwhile butler exposed interior chaos, allegations of corruption and wrongdoing astatine the highest levels of the Catholic Church. The Vatican slope faced mounting disapproval implicit its opaque operations, starring overseas fiscal institutions to temporarily suspend recognition transactions successful the world’s smallest state. And supra each other were the ongoing revelations of rampant intersexual maltreatment by Catholic priests and decades-long efforts by the religion hierarchy to screen it up. Then-Vatican spokesperson Federico Lom­bardi said the pope made his determination to resign “aware of the large problems the religion faces today,” but Lombardi insisted that the pope’s determination was idiosyncratic and not due to the fact that of “difficulties successful the papacy.”