Pope Francis remembered today the “beloved pope emeritus Benedict XVI”, who died yesterday at the age of 95, while the Vatican prepares the funeral that the pontiff will lead this Thursday. During these days, the body of Joseph Ratzinger will be exposed from tomorrow for three days for the last greeting of the faithful.
“Today we entrust to the Blessed Mother the beloved Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI to accompany him on his passage from this world to God,” Francis said today as he celebrated his first mass of the year in St. Peter’s Basilica.
Benedict XVI, the German Joseph Ratzinger, He died yesterday in the Vatican monastery where he had lived since his resignation as Pope in February 2013.with which he had put an end to a brief pontificate that began in April 2005 and marked by internal crises derived from the theft of documents by his butlers.
Ratzinger’s body will be exposed from tomorrow in St. Peter’s Basilica for a last greeting from the faithful around the world. As reported by the Vatican, the Basilica will be open Monday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Tuesday and Wednesday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
On Thursday, at 9:30 local time (5:30 in Argentina), Francis will lead the funeral of Benedict XVI, for which only delegations from his native Germany and Italy will be presentfollowing a request from the emeritus pontiff for the funeral to be done “with the gesture of simplicity.”