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Thousands line up to pay their respects to Pope Benedict XVI at St Peter's Basilica
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Thousands line up to pay their respects to Pope Benedict XVI at St Peter's Basilica - where he will lie in state for three days before a 'simple' funeral at the Vatican on Thursday
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- The doors of St Peter's Basilica opened just after 9am so mourners could file in to pay tribute
- Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI died on Saturday in the Vatican monastery at 9.34am at 95 years of age
- The German-born pope was the first to resign from the role in 600 years in 2013, citing ill health
- Only Italian and German delegates will be allowed to attend the late pope's 'simple' funeral on Thursday
Thousands of mourners have lined up to pay their respects to Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI at St Peter's Basilica - where he will lie in state for three days before a 'simple' funeral at the Vatican on Thursday.
While the number of visitors was large, there were no signs of the huge crowds who came to pay their respects to Pope John Paul II in 2005, when millions waited for hours to enter the basilica.
Last night, Benedict's long-time secretary, Archbishop Georg Gaenswein, and a handful of consecrated laywomen who served in his household, followed a van by foot in a silent procession toward the basilica.
Some of the women stretched out a hand to touch the body with respect.
Benedict's
time as pope was filled with controversy, including his alleged
mishandling of child abuse cases, misleading investigators,
rehabilitating a Holocaust survivor and antagonising Muslims by
suggesting Islam was violent. . .
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Benedict, born Joseph Ratzinger in Marktl, Germany, will lie in state until Wednesday and his funeral will be held on Thursday in St Peter's Square, presided over by Pope Francis.
The Vatican has said it will be a simple, solemn and sober ceremony in keeping with his wishes.
The 'simple' funeral is in keeping with the wishes of the former pope, who for decades as a German cardinal had served as the Church's guardian of doctrinal orthodoxy before he was elected pope in 2005.
Papal funerals typically draw heads of state from around the world, but the Vatican has said that only official delegations from Italy and from Benedict's native Germany were formally invited to attend the ceremony.
Representatives from other countries or organisations can attend in a private capacity, diplomats were told.
A few VIPs had a moment at the basilica before the general public to pay their respects, including Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni, the far-Right leader who in the past has professed admiration for the conservative leanings of Benedict.
Italian president Sergio Mattarella and his daughter Laura Mattarella also paid their respects to the former pope and theologian.
Security officials expected at least 35,000 people to pass by the body on the first day of viewing. READ MORE
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Thousands of Catholics pay respects to former pope Benedict XVI
Thousands of Catholics have begun queueing at the Vatican to pay their respects to the former pope Benedict XVI, with some hoping he would be canonised as a saint.
Benedict died on Saturday, aged 95, and his body was transferred from a Vatican monastery to St Peter’s Basilica on Monday at 7am, where it will lie in state for three days before his funeral on Thursday.
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Rome officials anticipate that at least 35,000 people a day will descend on the Vatican to pay their respects to Benedict, who almost a decade ago became the first pope to resign in 600 years, with many travelling from overseas.
Many of those who joined the queue early on Monday to see Benedict’s body, which has been dressed in red papal mourning robes, were priests and nuns who waited alongside Catholics devotees or those who were already visiting Rome and wanted to pay tribute.
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“The queue is moving pretty steadily, and there is a calm and serene atmosphere,” said Christopher White, the Vatican correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter. “Those who were queuing for hours before things opened up are the type of people who really had a strong devotion to him. For a certain type of Catholic, Benedict had quite a draw. He had a reputation as an intellect, scholar and theologian, which resonated with the more theologically minded conservative Catholic. Their immediate pivot is that he is one of the greatest minds the church has ever had, and they have every confidence that he will one day be a saint.”. .
Benedict's body, dressed in red and gold liturgical vestments and placed on a simple dais, was moved in a procession just before dawn through the Vatican Gardens from the monastery to a spot in front of the main altar of Christendom's largest Church.
Public viewing of the former's pope's body lasts for ten hours today in St Peter's Basilica.
Twelve hours of viewing are scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday before Thursday morning's funeral.
Pope Francis prayed for his predecessor's passage to heaven as he presided over a special New Year's Day Mass in St Peter's Basilica on Sunday.
Joseph Ratzinger was elected as the 265th pope on April 19 2005, aged 78, and chose the name Benedict.
He spent eight years leading the world's 1.3 billion Catholics before stepping down from the papacy in 2013, citing his old age and declining health.
The first pope to retire in 600 years: What will be different about Benedict's funeral?
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The Vatican has said Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI's funeral will be 'simple' compared to previous papal funerals.
This is said to be at the request of Benedict. However, there has also been consideration over how the funeral for a sitting pope could vary from that of a retired one.
Benedict was the first pope to retire from the role in 600 years in 2013.
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The Vatican has elaborate rituals for what happens after a reigning pope dies but none for a former pope, so what happens in the next few days could become the template for future ex-popes. . ." READ MORE
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