The Vatican has announced that hundreds of thousands of people will attend Pope Francis’s funeral on Saturday in St. Peter’s Square. Less than twenty-four hours after giving an Easter speech, the head of the Catholic Church passed away on Monday at the age of eighty-eight after a stroke. He had just suffered from double pneumonia, which had left him in bad health.
Numerous foreign leaders and royals have confirmed their presence, including President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil, which has the largest Catholic population in the world, Sir Keir Starmer, Donald Trump, and the Prince of Wales. Already, thousands of mourners have descended upon Vatican City, repeating prayers while holding candles, flowers, and crosses.
More information about the Pope’s last day was made public by the Vatican on Tuesday. Francis, who had just been in the hospital for five weeks, was a little nervous about going out on the balcony on Sunday.
Massimiliano Strappetti, the Pope’s personal nurse, was asked, “Do you think I can do this? After Strappetti reassured him, the pope blessed the assembly in St. Peter’s Square below as he emerged on the balcony. Francis began feeling ill the next morning at around 5:30 local time (3:30 GMT). He waved to Strappetti one hour later before going into a coma.
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