BY DUNCAN MIL
January 3, 2023 - The body of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who died on Saturday, will lie in state in St. Peter’s Basilica until Thursday morning’s funeral, which Pope Francis will lead at St. Peter’s Square.
Thousands of people began paying their final respects to Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI on Monday, as the former pontiff’s body lay in state at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.
Before his death, Pope Emeritus asked for a modest funeral that reflected his life as a “humble servant in the Lord’s vineyard.”
Benedict stunned the Catholic Church in February 2013 when he announced plans to step down from his position as Pope, citing his “advanced age.”
Benedict was a powerful force in the Catholic Church for decades, having taken over as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
He was elected Pope in April 2005, following John Paul II’s death.
Global leaders paid homage to the former Pope following his death. Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury and head of the Church of England, said he is “mourning” the former Pope.
“Pope Benedict was one of the greatest theologians of his age – committed to the faith of the Church and stalwart in its defence,” Welby said in a statement Saturday.
Benedict’s body will be taken back inside St. Peter’s Basilica after the funeral and buried in the Vatican Grottoes beneath the church, where more than 90 popes have found their final resting place.
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