The mortal remains of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI were moved early in the morning on Jan. 2, 2023, from his former residence in the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery to St. Peter’s Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands waited in line to pay their respects. / Daniel Ibañez / EWTN
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 2, 2023 / 16:00 pm (CNA).
Some 65,000 pilgrims waited in line to pay their respects to Benedict XVI Monday, providing moving scenes of grief and gratitude on the first day the pope emeritus’ body lay in state in St. Peter’s Basilica.
Simple rituals of prayer, holy water, incense, and silent goodbyes began in darkness inside the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery, where he died Saturday at age 95.
Those who had cared for him there during his nearly decade-long retirement — including his longtime personal secretary and spokesman, Archbishop Georg Gänswein — said prayers and farewells before Benedict’s mortal remains were transported in a motor coach from the monastery’s chapel to the basilica, as a small group of mourners processed behind the vehicle past brightly lit Christmas decorations in the Vatican Gardens.
Once there, pallbearers slowly bore his body inside the massive church and down the center aisle, setting it atop a platform in front of the altar. The symbolism was potent: the 265th pope lying in state almost directly above the tomb of the first, St. Peter.
Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, the archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica, incensed Benedict’s body and sprinkled it with holy water, praying for Benedict’s soul. The dignitaries in attendance included Italy’s president, Sergio Mattarella, and prime minister, Giorgia Meloni.
Among the first to have a private moment there with Benedict was Gänswein, who bent down to kiss the hands of his friend and mentor.
Outside, well-wishers waited patiently in St. Peter’s Square to enter the basilica, some praying for the former pope as they shuffled forward.
At the end of their wait, after their own solemn procession down the center aisle, they saw him at last, dressed in red and gold vestments and wearing a gold miter, rosary beads in his hands. Before they reached the front of the line for an unobstructed view, some craned their necks for a clearer glimpse or stood on tip-toes to snap photos with their cell phones.
Late Monday the Vatican press office estimated that 65,000 people had made the pilgrimage throughout the day. Benedict’s body will continue to lie in state through Jan. 4. His funeral is Thursday. You can watch EWTN’s live coverage of Benedict’s death from Rome here.
The mortal remains of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI were moved early in the morning on Jan. 2, 2023, from his former residence in the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery to St. Peter’s Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands waited in line to pay their respects. Vatican Media
The mortal remains of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI were moved early in the morning on Jan. 2, 2023, from his former residence in the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery to St. Peter’s Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands waited in line to pay their respects. Vatican Media
The mortal remains of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI were moved early in the morning on Jan. 2, 2023, from his former residence in the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery to St. Peter’s Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands waited in line to pay their respects. Vatican Media
The mortal remains of Benedict XVI were moved early in the morning on Jan. 2, 2023, from his former residence in the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery to St. Peter’s Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands waited in line to pay their respects. Vatican Media
Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, the archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica, presided over a brief ritual upon the arrival of Benedict XVI’s body in St. Peter’s Basilica on Jan. 2, 2023, sprinkling the body with holy water and offering prayers for the repose of his soul. Vatican Media
Archbishop Georg Gänswein, personal secretary to Pope Benedict XVI, bids farewell to the late pontiff while his body lays in state at St. Peter’s Basilica. Vatican Media
Italy’s Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni (third from left, front row) pays her respects to the late Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI at St. Peter’s Basilica on Jan. 2, 2023. Vatican Media
The mortal remains of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI were moved early in the morning on Jan. 2, 2023, from his former residence in the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery to St. Peter’s Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands waited in line to pay their respects. Daniel Ibañez / EWTN
The mortal remains of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI were moved early in the morning on Jan. 2, 2023, from his former residence in the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery to St. Peter’s Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands waited in line to pay their respects. Vatican Media
The mortal remains of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI were moved early in the morning on Jan. 2, 2023, from his former residence in the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery to St. Peter’s Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands waited in line to pay their respects. Vatican Media
The mortal remains of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI were moved early in the morning on Jan. 2, 2023, from his former residence in the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery to St. Peter’s Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands waited in line to pay their respects. Daniel Ibañez / EWTN
The mortal remains of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI were moved early in the morning on Jan. 2, 2023, from his former residence in the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery to St. Peter’s Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands waited in line to pay their respects. Daniel Ibañez / EWTN
The mortal remains of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI were moved early in the morning on Jan. 2, 2023, from his former residence in the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery to St. Peter’s Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands waited in line to pay their respects. Daniel Ibañez / EWTN
The mortal remains of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI were moved early in the morning on Jan. 2, 2023, from his former residence in the Vatican’s Mater Ecclesiae Monastery to St. Peter’s Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands waited in line to pay their respects. Vatican Media
The Holy See Press Office estimated that 65,000 people paid their respects to Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI on Jan. 2, 2023, the first day his body was lying in state in St. Peter’s Basilica. Vatican Media
Archbishop Georg Gänswein, the longtime personal secretary of Benedict XVI, embraces one of the estimated 65,000 pilgrims who came to pay their respects to the former pope on Jan. 2, 2023, the first day his body was lying in state in St. Peter’s Basilica. Daniel Ibañez / EWTN
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Dublin, Ireland, Jun 30, 2021 / 13:00 pm Dublin’s new Catholic archbishop has launched a three-week consultation on the future of the archdiocese. Archbishop Dermot Farrell said in a video released on June 25 that he wanted […]
Approximately 1,000 people have been working daily on the restoration of the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Paris, France. / Credit: Sumit Surai, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
ACI Prensa Staff, Apr 15, 2024 / 14:45 pm (CNA).
On April 15, 2019,… […]
Vatican City, Mar 25, 2020 / 06:56 am (CNA).- Pope Francis Wednesday accepted the resignation of Bishop Robert Baker of Birmingham, Alabama, nominating Bishop Steven J. Raica of the diocese of Gaylord, Michigan, as his successor.
Baker, 75, has been a bishop for 20 years. He headed the Diocese of Birmingham since 2007. The pope has appointed Baker apostolic administrator of the diocese until Raica’s installation.
Raica’s Mass of installation will be held June 23 at the Cathedral of St. Paul in Birmingham, according to the diocese.
The Diocese of Birmingham covers more than 28,000 square miles of Alabama and serves over 104,000 Catholics.
In a statement March 25, Baker promised his prayers for Bishop Raica and pledged collaboration and support.
The 67-year-old Raica, a Michigan native, has been bishop of Gaylord since August 2014.
He has experience working in deaf ministry and is fluent in American Sign Language. He can also speak Italian and Polish conversationally.
Born in 1952 in Munising, Raica was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Lansing in 1978. In 1998, St. Pope John Paul II named him a prelate of honor.
As a priest, Raica served in various parishes in Burton, Flint, Ovid, Charlotte and Bellevue. He served as co-rector of Lansing’s St. Mary Cathedral and chaplain of Olivet College in Olivet.
He was also superior of Casa Santa Maria, the North American College’s graduate studies house in Rome. He served as spiritual director and adjunct faculty at the college from 1999-2005.
From 2007-2009, he was vice postulator of the sainthood cause of Servant of God Antonietta Meo, a devout Italian girl who died of cancer at the age of six in 1937.
Raica is also a music lover with an affinity for classical, jazz, classical organ, and choral music. He enjoys reading, cooking, travel and the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, according to the Diocese of Gaylord in 2014.
The bishop holds both a licentiate and a doctorate in canon law from the Gregorian University in Rome.
He wrote his doctorate on Canon 1529 of the code of canon law, which concerns a judge’s role in collecting evidence in canonical trials.
As a priest, he served on the Lansing diocese’s tribunal as a pro-synodal judge, the promoter of justice, and a tribunal judge.
Respectful farewell. In Paradisum Deducant te Angeli.