World leaders and mourners of the Catholic faith gather in Vatican City for Pope Francis' funeral
incoming update…
"In the Name of the Holy Trinity. Amen.
"Feeling that the sunset of my earthly life is approaching and with lively hope in the Eternal Life, I wish to express my testamentary will only with regard to the place of my Burial.
"I have always entrusted my life and the priestly and episcopal ministry to the Mother of Our Lord, Mary Most Holy. Therefore, I ask that my mortal remains rest waiting for the day of the resurrection in the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.
"I want my last earthly journey to end in this ancient sanctuary Mariano where I went for prayer at the beginning and end of each Apostolic Journey to confidently entrust my intentions to the Immaculate Mother and thank Her for the docile and maternal care.
"I ask that my tomb be prepared in the hole of the aisle between the Pauline Chapel (Chapel of the Salus Populi Romani) and the Sforza Chapel of the aforementioned Papal Basilica as Indicated in the attached annex.
"The tomb must be in the earth; simple, without particular decorum and with the only inscription: Franciscus.
"The expenses for the preparation of my burial will be covered with the sum of the benefactor who I have arranged, to be transferred to the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore and of which I have provided to give appropriate instructions to Mons. Rolandas Makrickas, Extraordinary Commissioner of the Chapter Liberian.
"May the Lord give the well-deserved reward to those who have loved me and will continue to pray for me. The suffering that was made in the last part of my life I offered to the Lord for peace in the world and brotherhood among peoples."
Pope Francis'
funeral will be held on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. local Rome time (4:00 a.m. ET) and more than 200,000 people are expected to attend the deceased Vicar of Christ's services.
Thousands of mourners have taken to the Vatican this week to pay their final respects to Pope Francis following his death on Monday.
The funeral Mass will be held on the parvis of St. Peter's Basilica, and His Most Reverend Eminence Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals, will preside over the Catholic rites and blessings.
There have been 266 papal leaders of the Catholic Church since Jesus Christ's death in the AD 30s through Pope Francis – Jorge Mario Bergoglio – who died on Easter Monday at 88.
The most prominent pope is considered to be St. Peter, the first holder of the title.
Christ had appointed him the inaugural Bishop of Rome, and the papal church – St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City – is named in his honor.
This is an excerpt from an article written by Fox News' Charles Creitz.
Live Coverage begins here
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Sacred Heart School marks its last day
EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — A local catholic school will dismiss students for the final time on Friday. The Sacred Heart School in East Providence is set to close after opening its doors more than a century ago in 1917. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence announced in February that the decision was made due to financial difficulties and declining enrollment. The Diocese said they worked with families and staff to place them in other neighboring Catholic schools. Download the and apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch or with the new . Follow us on social media: Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Yahoo
On Father's Day, I'm thankful for a special uncle and making amends with my Dad
Father's Day always brings back bittersweet memories for me. My dad had been abusive to Mom, and they separated when I was 5, and my brother Adam was 2. The next time I saw him I was 15 and my brother was 12. Although our mom did her best to give us a stable and secure family life, there was always something, or someone, missing. Our dad. I felt for my brother because he was never to have special father-son moments like some of his friends had with their dads. Even so, Mom did her best to make that little apartment in the Liberty Square Housing Project a place where a 'real' family lived, even if there was no dad there. Although Dad wasn't in our life until we were adults, we were never short of having good men to serve as surrogate dads to us. Our first surrogate dad was Uncle Morgan, the husband of Mom's older sister, Thelma. Their home in rural East Palatka in North Florida was where we were welcomed as Mom planned her escape from our dad. Uncle Morgan's warm and comforting words, 'Bring the children to us, Ida. They will be safe here until you get settled in Miami.' It didn't matter that they already had five children of their own, ages 6 to 1. To him and Aunt Thelma, two more children wouldn't matter. So, my brother and I went to live with Uncle Morgan and Aunt Thelma for the next six months. It was early 1944, during World War II, and times were tough, especially for Blacks. But somehow, Uncle Morgan made us feel safe and secure. A soft-spoken gentle man, he often hummed a tune while he worked. And he seemed to be able to do everything. When the roof leaked, he fixed it. When we were ill, he cooked up some kind of bush medicine or home remedy that made us well again. Uncle Morgan worked on the farm of some neighboring whites, and at slaughtering time, he brought home fresh meat, which he smoked in an outside smokehouse. He also brought home some of the animal fat or tallow (I think that's what it's called), which Aunt Thelma mixed with potash to make soap. That soap was used for everything from scrubbing the wood floors to washing the family's laundry to bathing us children in a big tin tub in the kitchen. Mornings at our new home bustled with activity. Aunt Thelma packed Uncle's lunch in a clean lard bucket and sent him off to work while the three older children — including me and my cousin Bernice, who was a year younger, got ready for school. Then she packed our lunches, usually a warm biscuit smeared generously with homemade apple butter (still one of my favorite snacks). We loved Aunt Thelma. She was sweet and funny. But it was when Uncle Morgan came home from work that the house really came alive. I loved to watch him putter around the house, or sitting on the front porch sharpening his razor on a leather strap. He wasn't a big man, but there was a quiet strength about him. Soon, it was time for Mom to come for us. It was just before Easter and Mom brought gifts for all of us children. For Bernice and me, it was identical blue-and-white dresses that we would wear to church on Easter Sunday. All too soon, it was time to move on to our new home in the big city of Miami. Uncle Morgan got one of his friends to drive us to the Greyhound bus station. I don't remember crying as we left Palatka, but I did leave a piece of my heart there. It would be 26 years before I would see my dear uncle again. It was at the funeral of a family member, when I noticed a slightly built man smiling at me from across the room. He looked familiar. And then it hit me. 'Uncle Morgan,' I said as we reached out to hug each other. 'Do you remember me?' he asked. 'How could I ever forget you,' I said, thanking him for the time he had been dad to me and my brother when we so desperately needed a dad. The years hadn't treated him too well. But he still had that same kind manner and quick smile. He would die of cancer a few years later. By then, my brother and I had developed a relationship with our own dad. Reaching out to him was awkward at first. We didn't know how our mom would feel about us trying to get to know our dad after so many years. But Mom gave us her blessings. She had forgiven Dad a long time ago for the pain he had caused her. My brother and I took our children to see Dad on what was to be our last Father's Day together. At dinner, Dad kept his head bowed most of the time. I didn't know until later that he didn't want us to see the tears in his eyes. Dad was crying tears of joy mixed with regret. Today as we honor our fathers, I am happy that I made the effort to get to know the man responsible for my being here. He wasn't perfect. He made mistakes, big mistakes, that he wished he could undo. But the most important thing is, we forgave him. And we showed him love. So, on this Father's Day, I have no regrets. Happy Father's Day, Dad. Warm congratulations to Oliver L. Gross, who on June 7 was the only non-lawyer among five honorees recognized at the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. Bar Association and Foundation's 44th installation and scholarship gala. The event was at Florida International University's Roz and Cal Kovens Center at the Biscayne Bay campus in North Miami. Gross, president and CEO of New Urban Development LLC, an affiliate of the Urban League of Greater Miami, was honored with the Community Service Champion Award for overseeing the acquisition, development, financing, and property management of over 1,300 affordable housing units, which represents more than $300 million in investment, primarily in Miami-Dade County. Gross and his wife Janis have been married for 27 years and live in the Turnberry area. Also honored: Alexis Hammond, the Rising Star Award; Carlos J. Martinez, the Commitment to Justice Award; Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, the Trailblazer Award; and U.S. Circuit Court Judge Embry Kidd, the Richard E. S Toomey Legal Legacy Award.
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Yahoo
Nun's family ask visitors to be respectful of grave
The sister of a nun, who has taken the first step towards sainthood, has appealed for people to be respectful when visiting her gravestone and her family home. Sister Clare Crockett, 33, died after the school she was teaching music at in Playa Prieta, Ecuador, collapsed during a 7.8-magnitude earthquake in April 2016. In November, Sr Clare was declared a Servant of God by the Catholic Church - the first step towards being canonised. Shauna Gill said: "There are days you come to that grave and you would have to queue and we love that people come to the grave, but they are disrupting other graves around it." The council, which owns the City Cemetery in Londonderry, is to consider installing paths and railings around the grave of Sr Clare to accommodate an influx of visitors to the site. "There are just so many people that come from everywhere, they are not just from Derry, they travel from afar," Shauna Gill told BBC Radio Foyle's North West Today. "I totally understand other families' disappointment when they see other people are standing on graves. "They are touching Clare's gravestone and posing for photos with the headstone, so some people are just not thinking about their surroundings. "A lot of people are respectful, but there are some graves that are being damaged around it." Ms Gill said the narrow path makes it difficult for people to navigate the grave and believes removing hedging at the back of the grave and installing railings could help with access. "This could take all that congestion away from the front of the grave," she said. Ms Gill said she understands why people come to pray to Sr Clare, but they must understand their parents are also buried there. She said it can be hard for her family to visit the grave for a quiet moment of reflection knowing "you might not get near the grave". Sr Clare Theresa Crockett, from Brandywell in Derry, was previously an actor but turned down the chance to present on children's TV channel Nickelodeon to become a nun. Friends were said to be in disbelief after she announced her decision while holding a "beer in one hand and a cigarette in the other". She then took a vow with the Servant Sisters of the Home of the Mother order. Her motto in life was "all or nothing" and has previously been associated with fertility miracles. Sr Clare and another Irish nun injured in the quake, Sr Thérèse Ryan from County Limerick, had been teaching guitar and singing with five young women postulants - who were entering the religious order - when the earthquake struck. It is believed they became trapped on a stairwell as they ran out of the building. The 7.8-magnitude earthquake killed at least 480 people, injured more than 4,000 and left 231 missing. How does someone become a saint? Catholic Bishop of Derry Donal McKeown has said every grave is sacred and every family should have the right to pay their respects. He said the grave was "a major attraction" at the cemetery and a number of signposts had been erected to guide visitors to it. "Many people who have even come to visit me in Derry and have asked specifically to visit the grave," he said. "I just hope something can be done for all the family involved." He said long-term plans are being considered to manage the sheer volume of people arriving into the cemetery and sites linked to Sr Clare. Shauna Gill said they are also dealing with people arriving at Sr Clare's old house, which is currently occupied by a family member. "They can show up at any time of the day and can knock at the door," she said. "We have had people come and touch the walls or stand outside the house. "They have even asked for clothes or anything that Clare had, they just want a bit of Clare. "This is all new for everybody, so we are all trying to come to terms with it both as a town and as a family and we are just trying to find out what we can do about it." Ms Gill said it was difficult to navigate the many complexities associated with being the sister of a nun who is in the process of becoming a saint. Derry nun's family 'proud' as sainthood journey begins Funeral for nun killed in earthquake Sister Clare takes first step towards sainthood
