The funeral of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI will be held this Thursday (5), in St. Peter’s Square, in front of St. Peter’s Basilica, in the Vatican.
The ceremony will be chaired by Pope Francis and will begin at 5:30 am, Brasilia time. According to the Vatican, it will be a “simple, solemn and sober” event.
The Mass presided over by Francis is based on the burial rite of a pontiff, with some modifications, such as the removal of parts of the protocol on the burial of a pope who was in office.
At the funeral, four types of items will be placed in Benedict XVI’s coffin: the episcopal pallium, commemorative coins and medals that were minted during his papacy, and the scripture describing Benedict XVI’s pontificate, inside a metal cylinder.
After Mass, the body will be taken to the caves under St. Peter’s Basilica, where the coffin will be buried. The burial place will be in the tomb where Saint John Paul II was laid to rest before his beatification.
Benedict XVI died last Saturday (31), aged 95, in the isolated Vatican monastery, where he had lived since his resignation in 2013.
Joseph Ratzinger, who was the first pontiff in nearly 600 years to resign rather than hold the post for life, was elected pope in April 2005 after the death of John Paul II.
Ratzinger was born on April 16, 1927 in the city of Marktl, Germany, but spent much of his childhood and adolescence in Traunstein, near the border with Austria.
From a humble family and the youngest of three brothers, he entered the seminary at the age of 12 and was fluent in several languages, including Greek and Latin. He later received a doctorate in theology at the University of Munich.
controversies
Joseph Ratzinger’s trajectory in the Catholic Church was marked by some controversies.
An investigative report released in January 2022 says Benedict XVI knew of the existence of priests who abused children when he was archbishop of Munich, Germany, between 1977 and 1982. He denied the accusations.
In 2012, a year before he left office, the scandal known as “Vatileaks” came to light, concerning the leak of Vatican documents.
Among these documents would be letters from the former secretary general of the Governorate of Vatican City, Carlo Maria Viganó. The letters dealt with cases of corruption among Vatican bankers and even an alleged conspiracy to kill the incumbent pope.
Another controversy is related to alleged pressure from gay Vatican officials for Benedict XVI to step down as head of the Church.
The day before Francis’ election as pontiff, the Independent newspaper published a bombshell report about the Vatican allegedly spending 23 million euros on a complex in Rome that housed the largest gay sauna in Europe.
In 2020, an authorized biography of Ratzinger was published, in which the religious compares gay marriage to the “antichrist”.
“A century ago it would have been considered absurd to talk about same-sex marriage. Today, anyone who opposes him is excommunicated from society.” He added that “the same thing happens with abortion and the creation of human life in the laboratory.”
“Modern society is formulating a creed to the antichrist that assumes excommunication from society when anyone opposes it,” he insisted.
The pope emeritus also said that “the real threat to the Church is the world dictatorship of ideologies that claim to be humanist”.
(With information from Reuters)
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
