From early morning, the historic private secretary of Benedict XVI, Georg Ganswein, was in charge of receiving the special guests and authorities.
Dressed in the white papal robes and a red chasuble, the color of papal mourning, the body of Benedict XVI is exposed with a rosary in his hands, clasped at the level of the belly.
The body, with two Swiss guards at its sides, is exposed without the canopy, the white wool stole characteristic of the Pope, and without the so-called Fisherman’s Ring, two symbols of active pontiffs and not emeritus.
The first group of worshipers to enter the Basilica were Indian theology students who arrived at St. Peter’s Square at 5:30 a.m., they told Télam.
At 2:00 p.m. in Rome, the Vatican Gendarmerie estimated that some 40,000 people had already said goodbye to the pope emeritus. At 7:00 p.m., the Basilica’s closing time, the Vatican reported that 65,000 people had fired him.
With a queue that at the opening time of the Basilica was already hundreds of meters long, the first day thus exceeded the initial forecasts of 35,000 faithful per day made by the Roman authorities.
In the surroundings of the Vatican, the operation mounted by the Italian Civil Guard was reminiscent of that of the 2015 Jubilee of Mercy: first aid tents at the beginning of Via della Conciliazione and an exclusive path for the faithful on one side of the avenue that connects the center of Rome with Saint Peter’s Square.
Ratzinger’s body, exposed on the central altar of the Basilica, had been transferred at 7 o’clock today from the Matter Ecclesia monastery, where he lived since his resignation from the pontificate in 2013 and where he died at 9:34 on 31 from December.
“I come to say goodbye to a wonderful Pope who paved the way for many of the things we see today come true with Francis”described to Télam Ana, a nun from the Pauline Congregation who came to greet Benedict XVI.
This Tuesday and Wednesday, the Basilica will be open until 7:00 p.m. for the farewell of the faithful to Benedict XVI, the Vatican reported. On Thursday, at 9:30 local time, Francis will lead the celebration of unprecedented funerals in the history of the Church, in which for the first time an acting Pope will dismiss an emeritus.
Although the only official delegations present will be those from Ratzinger’s native Germany and Italy, other foreign leaders have confirmed their presence, including authorities from the Belgian monarchy, Bavaria and the Polish government.
Once the funeral is over, the body of Benedict XVI will be buried immediately in the basement of Saint Peter’s Basilica, in a crypt where his predecessors John XXIII and John Paul II had already been.
Source: Ambito
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