When the sun rose over Rome on April 26, 2025, it rose over a city in mourning, a Church without its shepherd, and a world grappling with the end of a spiritual era.
Pope Francis, the first pope from the Americas, the first Jesuit pope, and the first to take the name of the Poor Man of Assisi, was laid to rest today in an emotional and historic funeral attended by over 250,000 mourners at St. Peter’s Square.
His simple wooden coffin, marked only by the name Franciscus, was carried aloft through the colonnades that had for centuries seen the passing of popes, saints, emperors — and now bore witness to one of the most beloved spiritual figures of the modern age.
A Life Remembered
Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1936, Pope Francis’s life was one of startling contrasts: a son of immigrants, a nightclub bouncer, a chemistry student — before answering the call to priesthood.
Ascending to the papacy in 2013 after the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, Francis came to be known as “the Pope of the Poor,” “the Bridge-Builder,” and even simply “Papa Francisco.”
During his 12-year pontificate, he confronted the scandals of the Church head-on, championed environmental protection, spoke tirelessly for the rights of refugees and migrants, and sought to heal rifts between faiths and within the Church itself.
“Mercy is the very foundation of the Church’s life,” he once said — and for Francis, it was never a slogan. It was a daily command.
The Day the World Stood Still
The funeral Mass, presided over by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, began at dawn with solemn chants of the Miserere.
Pilgrims stood silently, many with tears streaming down their faces, some clutching rosaries or handwritten notes.
Across the world:
- In Buenos Aires, tens of thousands packed the Plaza de Mayo for a simultaneous open-air Mass.
- In Nairobi, schoolchildren waved both the Vatican and Kenyan flags at a commemorative service.
- In New York City, the Empire State Building was lit up in white and gold in tribute.
Everywhere, a sense of profound gratitude, sorrow, and hope resonated.
“He taught us that faith is not rules and rigidity — it’s love and mercy,” said Sister Angela, a missionary nurse who traveled from the Philippines to attend the funeral.
“He showed the world that true strength is gentleness, not domination,” said Archbishop Desmond Wright of Cape Town.
Breaking Tradition in Death as in Life
In characteristic humility, Pope Francis had requested no grand tomb within the papal crypts.
Instead, after the funeral, his coffin was transported to Santa Maria Maggiore, the Roman basilica he often visited quietly to pray before and after each major journey.
He will rest among ordinary clergy and pilgrims — the final gesture of a man who believed that greatness lay not in palaces, but in service.
No gold, no elaborate fanfare. Only prayers, love, and the whispered Latin of old hymns:
“In paradisum deducant te angeli…” — May the angels lead you into paradise.
A Gathering of Worlds
The funeral drew a rare sight: political rivals, global faith leaders, ordinary people, all standing shoulder-to-shoulder in sorrow and solidarity.
Among notable attendees:
- President Joe Biden knelt for several moments before Francis’s coffin, later calling him “a voice for peace and dignity in a divided world.”
- President Emmanuel Macron, visibly emotional, described him as “the conscience of the global south.”
- Muslim imams, Jewish rabbis, and Buddhist monks all came bearing wreaths, a tribute to a man who tirelessly worked to build bridges where others built walls.
Even those critical of the Church’s traditional stance found something to admire in Francis’s open heart.
“He didn’t just preach love — he lived it,” said a LGBTQ+ activist from Italy who had once met the Pope during a general audience.
“He wasn’t perfect. But he tried to listen. That mattered. That changed things.“
Nine Days of Mourning: The Novendiales
As the world says goodbye, the Vatican enters Novendiales — the nine-day mourning period traditionally observed after the death of a pope.
Each day will see special Masses held at St. Peter’s, reflections on his life, and prayers for the Church’s next steps.
Bells will toll across the world — in African village chapels, in bustling American cathedrals, in tiny South Pacific missions — honoring the Pope who reminded the Church that she is first and always a mother to her people.
Meanwhile, the College of Cardinals prepares to gather for a Conclave to elect Francis’s successor — a heavy task given the size of the shoes left behind.
The Final Benediction
In his homily today, Cardinal Re captured the collective ache and gratitude of a world that has lost a father:
“Francis did not rule from above. He walked among us.
He was a pastor who bore the smell of the sheep, who lifted the wounded, who broke bread with sinners.
He leaves a Church bruised, dirty, and messy from being out in the streets — just as he wished.
He leaves a world forever changed by mercy.“
And as the casket descended, as sunlight bathed the mourners, and as the bells rang out their final farewell, it felt, perhaps, less like an ending — and more like a passing of the torch.
The work of mercy, justice, and compassion continues.
🕊️ Rest well, Papa Francesco. The world will not forget. Your light endures.