Vatican City (AP) – The faithful Roman Catholic began visiting the tomb of Pope Francis on Sunday, presenting beyond the simple white tomb in the main basilica of Santa María a day after the powerful world and a multitude of hundreds of thousands were dismissed.
A single white rose was placed in the grave that said “Francisco”, the name of the Pope in Latin. A light shed his warm brightness on the grave and a reproduction of the Pontiff’s pectoral cross on the wall on it.
Rome, Italy, April 27: Faithful tail to lend its respect in the tomb of Pope Francis in the Basilica of Santa María Major in Rome, Italy, on April 27, 2025. (Photo of Riccardo de Luca/Anadolu through Getty Images)
People passed, many crossed or took photos with their phones. The accommodators urged them to continue moving for accommodation, the thousands who went into mass to the Basilica of Rome to see the grave, forming a long line outside.
Rome, Italy – April 27: Faithful Panado in front of Pope Francis’s tomb on the first day of his opening to the public in Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica, on April 27, 2025 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Antonio Masiello/Getty Images)
“Pope Francis for me was an inspiration, a guide,” said Elias Caravalhal.
Caravalhal lives in Rome, but could not respect Francis when the body was in a state in the Basilica of San Pedro after his death on Easter Monday at the age of 88. He said he visited the grave “to thank him for what he has done.”
Rome, Italy – April 27: Faithful tail to see the tomb of Pope Francis on the first day of his opening to the public in Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica, on April 27, 2025 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Antonio Masiello/Getty Images)
The grave opened in the second of nine days of official mourning for Francis, after which a conclave will be a hero for electricity to the next Pope.
Meanwhile, a special mass was a hero in the Plaza de San Pedro directed by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of the Vatican. Parolin is a possible contender to be next due to its prominence in the Catholic hierarchy.
Rome, Italy, April 27: Pray Faithful in front of Pope Francis’s tomb in the Basilica of Santa María Major in Rome, Italy, on April 27, 2025. (Photo by Riccardo de Luca/Anadolu through Getty Images)
A date for the conclave has not yet been established, but it must begin before May 10. The cardinals who traveled to Rome for Francis’s funeral will meet regularly this week before the conclave as they begin to draw a path to follow for the Catholic of 1.4 billion people.
Pope Francis chose his place of burial in the main basilica of Santa María, near an icon of the Madonna that he venerated, because he reflects his life “humble, simple and essential”, the archbishop who manages the basilica said Friday.
Rome, Italy – April 27: A nun prays in front of Pope Francis’s tomb on the first day of his opening to the public in Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica, on April 27, 2025 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Antonio Masiello/Getty Images)
“It’s amazing that he is no longer with us,” said his Murphy, who visited the duration of the bomb a visit to Rome from his home in India. “It’s sad that we don’t get potatoes like this very often.”