Mourners are paying their respects to Pope Francis, whose body was moved from his Vatican residence to St Peter’s Basilica before his funeral on Saturday.
The Pope’s open coffin was carried on Wednesday morning in a solemn procession through St Peter’s Square where as many as 20,000 pilgrims had gathered, Vatican media said.
As the coffin crossed the square, bells tolled and crowds broke into applause – a traditional Italian sign of respect.
The Pope died on Monday aged 88 following a stroke and a battle with double pneumonia, which led to him spending five weeks in hospital earlier this year. The first Latin American leader of the Catholic Church, he had held the role for 12 years.
On Wednesday, red-robed cardinals and white-clad priests walked the Pope’s coffin from his personal residence at the Casa Santa Marta guesthouse to the St Peter’s Basilica. The procession lasted a little under 40 minutes.
Swiss Guards, who are responsible for the Pope’s safety, escorted his coffin to the church’s altar.
His body will lie in state in the church until Friday evening. Public viewing began on Wednesday.
Soon after the event began, the queue was already eight hours long, reported Italian media. By mid-afternoon, tens of thousands of people were lining the square.
The Vatican said on Wednesday afternoon it might extend the church’s opening time beyond midnight due to the number of people wanting to pay their respects.
The church had been due to close at midnight local time on Wednesday and Thursday and on Friday, before the coffin is sealed.
Luis and Macarena, from Mexico, had come to Rome for their honeymoon and hoped to see the Pope, who gives a special blessing to newlyweds. Luis told the BBC seeing the Pope’s final resting place would allow them to feel a connection.
“Pope Francis is a saint and he will bless us from heaven,” Luis said.
Mary Ellen, an American who lives in Italy, said she had come to the Vatican on an overnight train to “say goodbye”.
“I love Papa Francesco,” she said. “Because he’s humble, kind, he loves immigrants. I know he’s put up with a lot of difficult things in the Vatican. He’s fought against power and the power of the Vatican to be a true Christian, true Catholic.”
She said when she passes the coffin, she will be praying and will ask Pope Francis for help with her own work with immigrants.
Inside St Peter’s, under the watchful marble eye of popes and saints, a steady stream of people made their way to the Pope’s casket to pay their respects.
Some kneeled while others prayed and crossed themselves, before slowly moving on.
Many lingered to admire the staggering beauty of the basilica. The atmosphere was quiet and solemn despite the thousands of people present.
Two women who waited for five hours to see the Pope said they had arrived at the basilica’s queue at 09:00.
One told the BBC it was important to her to say goodbye to the pontiff.
“All these years I followed all he did and it’s as if I travelled all over the world with him, even if I was just at home. He liked going everywhere and prioritises the poor,” she said.
Asked what was it like to see him in his coffin, she replied: “It’s just like the man we used to see on TV”.
—BBC
