Articles in this Cluster
23-04-2025
Pope Francis, 88, died of a stroke after recent illness and will have his funeral Saturday in St Peter’s Square, with up to 250,000 attendees. Leaders and royals including Donald Trump, Volodymyr Zelensky, Prince William, Emmanuel Macron, Ursula von der Leyen, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Andrzej Duda, Javier Milei, Keir Starmer, and Giorgia Meloni will attend. His body will lie in state in St Peter’s Basilica from Wednesday to Friday, with public visiting hours each day. Breaking tradition, he requested no private viewing for cardinals, no coffin pedestal, and burial at Rome’s Basilica of St Mary Major rather than inside the Vatican, in a simple grave marked only “Franciscus.” The funeral will be led by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, followed by a nine-day mourning period; a conclave will then be convened within 15–20 days to elect his successor.
Entities: Pope Francis, St Peter’s Square, Donald Trump, Volodymyr Zelensky, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re • Tone: analytical • Sentiment: neutral • Intent: inform
23-04-2025
Houston Catholics gathered at the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart to mourn Pope Francis, remembering his humility, inclusion, and outreach to the marginalized. In the diverse Houston-Galveston Diocese, where Mass is offered in 14 languages, clergy emphasized unity through the Gospel. Parishioners praised Francis’ focus on the poor and immigrants, while acknowledging his sometimes polarizing stances. Pope Francis, 88, died from a cerebral stroke leading to heart failure after recent respiratory illness; he remained widely popular among U.S. Catholics. The community described his passing as a family loss felt across languages and cultures.
Entities: Pope Francis, Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, Houston-Galveston Diocese, U.S. Catholics, immigrants • Tone: analytical • Sentiment: positive • Intent: inform
23-04-2025
The Vatican set Pope Francis’ funeral for Saturday at 10 a.m. local time in front of St. Peter’s Basilica, following his death at 88 from a stroke and heart failure. His body, placed in a simple wooden coffin in line with his wish “to be normal,” will be transferred Wednesday from Casa Santa Marta to lie in state in the basilica. Photos show him in a red robe with mitre and rosary. Cardinal Kevin Farrell will lead the procession; the funeral Mass will be celebrated by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re. World leaders and royals, including President Trump, Volodymyr Zelensky, Emmanuel Macron, Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, the U.K.’s Prince William, and others plan to attend; Vladimir Putin will not. After the Mass, Francis will be entombed at Rome’s Basilica of St. Mary Major, which he frequented. Within 15–20 days, cardinal electors under 80 will convene a conclave in the Sistine Chapel to choose the next pope, with traditional smoke signals marking the voting outcomes.
Entities: Pope Francis, The Vatican, St. Peter’s Basilica, Cardinal Kevin Farrell, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re • Tone: analytical • Sentiment: neutral • Intent: inform
23-04-2025
Pope Francis, 88, died from a stroke and heart failure shortly after returning home from a five-week hospitalization for double pneumonia. Among his final words, he thanked his personal nurse, Massimiliano Strappetti, for encouraging him to greet the Easter crowd in St. Peter’s Square, where he briefly rode in the popemobile and addressed worshippers despite frailty. He became ill early Monday, fell into a coma, and died peacefully without prolonged suffering. The College of Cardinals set his funeral for Saturday at St. Peter’s Basilica and will convene a conclave within weeks to choose his successor.
Entities: Pope Francis, Massimiliano Strappetti, St. Peter’s Square, Vatican, College of Cardinals • Tone: somber • Sentiment: negative • Intent: inform
23-04-2025
Thousands of pilgrims lined up at St. Peter’s Basilica to pay their respects as Pope Francis lay in state for the first of three days, his coffin placed before St. Peter’s tomb. Crowds stretched beyond Vatican City, with nearly 20,000 people passing through on day one amid a somber, prayerful atmosphere. In keeping with Francis’ wish for simplicity, he lies in an open wooden coffin, departing from traditional triple coffins. A brief service led by Cardinal Kevin Farrell preceded a solemn procession into the basilica. The funeral is set for Saturday in St. Peter’s Square, with up to 250,000 attendees including global leaders such as the US, French, UK, German, and Ukrainian heads of state.
Entities: Pope Francis, St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City, St. Peter’s Square, Cardinal Kevin Farrell • Tone: somber • Sentiment: neutral • Intent: inform
23-04-2025
Thousands of mourners are lining up at the Vatican to pay their respects as Pope Francis lies in state in St. Peter’s Basilica. CNN’s Clarissa Ward describes the scene inside the basilica, noting the solemn atmosphere and steady flow of visitors, and highlights the global outpouring of grief and tributes to the late pontiff.
Entities: Pope Francis, Vatican, St. Peter’s Basilica, Clarissa Ward, CNN • Tone: analytical • Sentiment: negative • Intent: inform
23-04-2025
The Vatican released the first photos of Pope Francis’ body lying in a casket at the Domus Santa Marta, where he lived, as cardinals convened to plan the succession. His funeral is set for Saturday at 10 a.m. in St. Peter’s Square, led by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, with public viewing beginning Wednesday in St. Peter’s Basilica. Pope Francis died at 88 from complications following a stroke, ending a 12-year papacy. President Donald Trump and Argentina’s President Javier Milei are expected to attend. In his will, Francis requested burial at Rome’s St. Mary Major basilica, home to his favored Marian icon.
Entities: Pope Francis, The Vatican, Domus Santa Marta, St. Peter’s Square, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re • Tone: analytical • Sentiment: neutral • Intent: inform
23-04-2025
The Vatican said Pope Francis’ final words were a thank-you to his nurse, Massimiliano Strappetti: “Thank you for bringing me back to the Square,” referring to his decision to greet crowds in the popemobile after Easter Mass. The 88-year-old pontiff felt ill early Easter Monday, fell into a coma, and died shortly after from a heart attack without suffering, officials said. He had recently faced serious health issues, including double pneumonia. Images show him lying in state in red vestments; public viewing begins Wednesday in St. Peter’s Basilica, with his funeral set for Saturday in St. Peter’s Square.
Entities: Pope Francis, Vatican, Massimiliano Strappetti, St. Peter’s Basilica, St. Peter’s Square • Tone: analytical • Sentiment: neutral • Intent: inform
23-04-2025
Pope Francis, who died on Easter Monday at 88, will lie in state in an open coffin at St Peter’s Basilica from Wednesday, drawing tens of thousands of mourners ahead of his Saturday funeral (9am UK time). A nine-day mourning period (novendiali) will follow, after which a conclave between 5–10 May will elect his successor. In line with rules he changed in 2024, he will be buried in a single wooden coffin lined with zinc and, breaking tradition, interred at Santa Maria Maggiore. World leaders including Prince William, Emmanuel Macron, Micheál Martin, and Donald Trump are set to attend. The conclave’s secret ballots in the Sistine Chapel will signal results via black or white smoke.
Entities: Pope Francis, St Peter’s Basilica, novendiali, conclave, Sistine Chapel • Tone: analytical • Sentiment: neutral • Intent: inform
23-04-2025
Pope Francis’s funeral will be held Saturday before St. Peter’s Basilica with simplified rites he ordered to reflect his humble style. His body will lie in a single coffin, placed in the coffin for public viewing rather than on a bier, and he will be buried in a plain, undecorated tomb. In his will, Francis requested burial at the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, near the Salus Populi Romani icon he frequently visited. The ceremony, led by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, will draw global leaders and thousands of mourners. Francis, who died at 88, was known for rejecting papal trappings, condemning clericalism, and emphasizing care for the poor, interfaith outreach, and environmental stewardship. Leaders expected include Britain’s Keir Starmer, Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky, Argentina’s Javier Milei, Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and President Trump. Memorials are being held worldwide, and several countries declared days of mourning.
Entities: Pope Francis, St. Peter’s Basilica, Santa Maria Maggiore, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Salus Populi Romani • Tone: analytical • Sentiment: neutral • Intent: inform
23-04-2025
Pope Francis’s funeral Mass will be held Saturday at 10 a.m. local time (4 a.m. Eastern) in St. Peter’s Square, with his body lying in state at St. Peter’s Basilica beforehand. The New York Times will stream the service, and major U.S. and international broadcasters (NBC, CBS, CNN, ABC, BBC, Sky News, CBC, CTV, Globo News, CNN Brasil, Televisión Española/24 Horas) will air it; the Vatican’s YouTube channel will also carry coverage. The rites, simplified under rules Francis introduced, include a public Mass presided over by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re and a single wooden coffin. Francis will be interred at the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, per his wish for a simple tomb marked “Franciscus.” Special Masses in Rome will continue for nine days after. Expected attendees include global leaders such as President Trump, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, Argentina’s President Javier Milei, and Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Entities: Pope Francis, St. Peter’s Square, The New York Times, Vatican, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re • Tone: informational • Sentiment: neutral • Intent: inform
23-04-2025
The Vatican began Pope Francis’s funeral rituals with a blend of tradition and deliberate simplicity he ordered himself. Swiss Guards in Medici colors and vestiges of old customs accompanied a plain coffin, not the traditional nested trio. His body lies in state for three days in St. Peter’s Basilica beneath its grand dome, on a low pedestal rather than a bier, without a private viewing in the Apostolic Palace. Crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square as the procession moved from Casa Santa Marta, where Francis lived. He requested burial at Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, in a simple grave “in the earth” marked only “Franciscus,” reflecting his streamlined approach to papal rites in an age of real-time global viewing.
Entities: Pope Francis, The Vatican, St. Peter’s Basilica, St. Peter’s Square, Swiss Guards • Tone: analytical • Sentiment: neutral • Intent: inform
