Catholic News

• 61,000 mourners visit St. Peter's Basilica as Pope lies in state (CWN)
  During the first day that the body of Pope Francis lay in state in St. Peter’s Basilica, 61,000 mourners filed past his coffin, the Vatican newspaper reported.
• 130 nations send delegations to papal funeral (ANSA)
  130 nations are sending delegations to Pope Francis’s funeral on April 26, the Office of Protocol of the Vatican’s Secretariat of State has announced. Some 50 heads of state and 10 monarchs will be in attendance, according to the announcement.
• Poor to welcome Pope's casket to Santa Maria Maggiore (CNS)
  A group of poor and needy people will welcome Pope Francis’s casket to the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore following his funeral Mass, the Holy See Press Office has announced. “The poor have a privileged place in the heart of God,” according to the press office, as well as “in the heart and magisterium of the Holy Father, who had chosen the name Francis to never forget them.” “For this reason, a group of the poor and needy will be present on the steps leading to the Papal Basilica of St. Mary Major to pay their last respects to Pope Francis before the burial of his coffin,” the statement continued.
• Let us be on fire with Pope Francis's love, Cardinal Zuppi preaches (Conferenza Episcopale Italiana)
  Cardinal Matteo Zuppi of Bologna, president of the Italian Episcopal Conference, celebrated a Mass for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Basilica on April 23. Cardinal Zuppi preached, “Let us give thanks for the gift of this father and pastor, brother, who spent his whole life to the end, with so much evangelical freedom because he was obedient to Christ, without arrogance, choosing the simplicity so important in the life of St. Francis.” “Pope Francis with his whole life became a tireless and credible pilgrim in the name of Jesus, listening to and touching the heart,” the prelate continued. “Today he still asks us to look to the future, to open our eyes to dream, not to be satisfied.” Cardinal Zuppi added: He pointed out and lived joy, he put the words of Jesus, the kerygma, at the center, freeing it from so many glosses, personal and ecclesiastical, that made it ineffective, so much so that it no longer spoke to the heart ... He reminds us to be in joy, as he always indicated in his ministry. Let us take his words and deeds with us, let us let them touch our hearts, let us be on fire with his love.
• Francis's tomb made of marble, from the land of his Italian grandparents (Vatican News)
  At Pope Francis’s request, his tomb in the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore has been made of marble from Liguria, the Italian region from which his ancestors hailed, the coadjutor archpriest of the basilica said on television. The simple tomb bears the name Franciscus, along with a replica of his pectoral cross.
• Vatican newspaper pays tribute to Church's efforts to save Genoa's Jews during Holocaust (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
  The Vatican newspaper devoted a full page in its April 24 edition to the Church’s efforts to save Jews in Genoa during the Holocaust. (April 24 was Yom HaShoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day.) Drawing on archival research, historian Sergio Favretto discussed the collaboration between Cardinal Pietro Boetto, SJ, leading officials of the Vatican’s Secretariat of State, and others, in order to help Jews make their way to Switzerland. “The Boetto model highlights a series of courageous moves that are based on a constant relationship and a close correspondence with the Secretariat of State of Pius XII,” Favretto wrote, “with Cardinal [Luigi] Maglione, with Msgr. Montini and Msgr. Tardini; as well as with Archbishop Filippo Bernardini,” the apostolic nuncio to Switzerland. Msgr. Giovanni Battista Montini was the future Pope St. Paul VI; Msgr. Domenico Tardini eventually became a cardinal and St. John XXIII’s Secretary of State.
• Stop Russian aggression, Ukrainian Catholic leader pleads following missile attack on Kyiv (Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church)
  Following the largest Russian missile strike on Kyiv since last summer, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church denounced the attack as “barbaric aggression.” “I call on religious leaders, heads of state, and public figures across the international community to speak with one voice, to issue a united appeal, and to act together to stop Russian aggression against Ukraine,” said Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk. He added: Let us help to silence the weapons on our long-suffering land, to restrain hostilities, and to establish a just and lasting peace. For today, the Risen Christ—our peace—stands among us and breathes His peace upon us. Let us allow Him to work through us. Let us help stop the war. Let us help Ukraine to survive and live.
• Italian prelates, mayors call for international truce on day of papal funeral (L'Arena (Italian))
  Mayors and prelates from Verona, Florence, Assisi, and Lampedusa—four places visited by Pope Francis—called for an international day of truce on April 26, the day of the papal funeral. “A day of peace, a sign of truce, is the truest manifestation of condolences,” stated the appeal.
• Indonesian Muslim leader praises late Pope's humanity, tolerance (Radio Republik Indonesia)
  Following the passing of Pope Francis, an Indonesian Muslim leader, Haedar Nashir, said, “We have lost a prominent Catholic leader who dedicated his life to promoting religious humanity, tolerance, and compassion, as well as to upholding peace worldwide.” The Southeast Asian nation of 282 million (map), the world’s fourth most populous, is the largest Muslim-majority nation. The nation is 78% Muslim, 13% Christian (3% Catholic), and 2% ethnic religionist; Pope Francis made an apostolic journey there in 2024.
• Irish, US novelists pay tribute to late Pontiff (CWN)
  The Vatican newspaper has published tributes to Pope Francis by Jonathan Safran Foer, an American novelist, and Colum McCann, an Irish writer who lives in New York.
• Cardinals set plans for conclave meditations (Vatican News)
  Meeting on Wednesday morning, April 24, in a general congregation, 113 cardinals began preparations for the papal conclave, and chose the two preachers who will deliver meditations before the voting begins. Father Donato Ogliari, the Benedictine abbot of the basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, will deliver the first meditation. He will be followed by Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa, the former preacher of the pontifical household. The date for the opening of the conclave—probably May 5 or 6—has not yet been settled. As cardinals arrive in Rome, they are joining in the general congregations, which will continue each day until the opening of the conclave. All the cardinals are taking the oath prescribed by the apostolic constitution Universi Dominici Gregis, for prelates preparing for the conclave.
• Vatican announces schedule for Masses for Pope Francis (Vatican News)
  The Vatican has announced the schedule of principal celebrants for the Novemdiales: the nine days of Masses said for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis. The Novemdiales begin with the funeral Mass, on Saturday, April 26, at 10 AM Rome time, with Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals, as principal celebrant. There will follow (all times are local Rome times): Sunday, April 27, at 10:30 am, in St. Peter’s Square, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State, presiding; Monday, April 28, at 5:00 PM in St. Peter’s basilica, with Cardinal Baldassare Reina, vicar general of Rome, presiding; Tuesday, April 29, at 5:00 PM in St. Peter’s basilica, with Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, Archpriest of the basilica, presiding; Wednesday, April 30, at 5:00 PM in St. Peter’s basilica, with Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, Vice-Dean of the College of Cardinals, presiding; Thursday, May 1, at 5:00 PM in St. Peter’s basilica, with Cardinal Victor Fernandez, prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, presiding; Friday, May 2, at 5:00 PM in St. Peter’s basilica, with Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, presiding; Saturday, May 3, at 5:00 PM in St. Peter’s basilica, with Cardinal Ángel Fernández Artime, pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Religious, presiding; and Sunday, May 4, at 5:00 PM in St. Peter’s basilica, with Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, Protodeacon of the College of Cardinals, presiding. (In this listing, the titles of officials of the Roman Curia are given for purposes of identification. Officially, the mandate of prefects of the Vatican dicasteries ceases with the death of the Pontiff.)
• German bishops issue guide for same-sex blessings (CNA)
  The Catholic bishops of Germany have issued guidelines for pastors giving blessings to couples living in irregular situations, including same-sex couples. “Non-church married couples, divorced and remarried couples, and couples in all the diversity of sexual orientations and gender identities are of course part of our society,” the bishops say, adding that any request for a priest’s blessing should be recognized as “an an expression of gratitude for their love and an expression of the desire to shape this love from faith.” The blessing, the bishops’ guidelines state, is given “at the service of the divine-human encounter,” and in “the hope of a relationship with God that can sustain human life.” While not specifying the form that the church blessing should take, the bishops say that it would “express the appreciation of the people who have asked for the blessing, their togetherness and their faith.” The guidelines are a response to the 2023 Vatican document Fiducia Supplicans, which opened the way for church blessings of same-sex couples.
• Senior Ukrainian prelates recall late Pope's efforts on nation's behalf (CWN)
  In their statements following Pope Francis’s death, Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk and Cardinal Mykola Bychok, CSsR, recalled the late Pontiff’s efforts on behalf of Ukraine.
• Requiem Mass for Pontiff's soul celebrated at Basilica of Holy Sepulchre (Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem)
  Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, OFM, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, presided at a requiem Mass for Pope Francis’s soul on April 23 in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, built on the site of Christ’s death and resurrection. Father Francesco Patton, OFM, the Custos (Franciscan provincial) of the Holy Land, preached the homily. Following the Mass, as Cardinal Pizzaballa departed for Rome, he said: It is a moment during which we need to be united in prayer, first for me, because this is a time in which I carry a great and important responsibility. And we must all pray for the Church, for we are a part of a big body which is universal Church—the Catholic Church. I am sure that your prayers, all together, will bring the right choices for the good of the universal Church.
• Prelates announced for late Pontiff's coffin closing, burial rites (CWN)
  Archbishop Diego Ravelli, master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations, has published the lists of prelates who will take part in the rite of the closing of the late Pope’s coffin at 8:00 PM on April 25 and in the internment rite in the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, following the funeral Mass the following day.
• Israel's president hails Pope as man of 'deep faith and boundless compassion' (Vatican News)
  “I send my deepest condolences to the Christian world and especially the Christian communities in Israel—the Holy Land—on the loss of their great spiritual father, His Holiness Pope Francis,” President Isaac Herzog of Israel said following the Pontiff’s death. “A man of deep faith and boundless compassion, he dedicated his life to uplifting the poor and calling for peace in a troubled world.” President Herzog continued: He rightly saw great importance in fostering strong ties with the Jewish world and in advancing interfaith dialogue as a path toward greater understanding and mutual respect. I truly hope that his prayers for peace in the Middle East and for the safe return of the hostages will soon be answered. May his memory continue to inspire acts of kindness, unity, and hope. Archbishop Adolfo Tito Yllana, the apostolic nuncio to Israel, said that “even more than the official message, I was especially touched by a personal phone call of condolence that President Herzog made to me on behalf of the country he represents, just a few minutes after the announcement of the death.”
• Cardinal Zen allowed to leave Hong Kong for papal funeral (AP)
  Cardinal Joseph Zen has been given permission by Chinese authorities to leave Hong Kong and travel to Rome for the funeral of Pope Francis. Cardinal Zen, who has been an outspoken critic of the Beijing government, is not eligible to take part in the papal conclave, having past his 80th birthday. (He is 93.)
• Cardinals Re, Parolin pay tribute to Pope Francis (CWN)
  Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals, led the recitation of the Rosary in St. Peter’s Square on the evening of April 22 for the repose of Pope Francis’s soul (video). Vatican News, the news agency of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication, reported that hundreds of the faithful were in attendance.
• Cardinal Müller: next Pope must heal divisions (Catholic Herald)
  Cardinal Gerhard Müller, the former prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, has said that the coming papal conclave must select a Pontiff who will be able “to unify the Church in the revealed truth.” The German cardinal emphasized the danger of doctrinal divisions within the Church, and the need to restore clarity. He said: “I am praying that the Holy Spirit will illuminate the cardinals, because a heretic pope who changes every day depending on what the mass media is saying would be catastrophic.”
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