VATICAN CITY, Jan. 1 / US: Pope Francis celebrated the Roman Catholic Church’s traditional World Peace Day on Sunday, but the start of the new year in the Vatican has been overshadowed by the death of his predecessor, Benedict.
Francis presided over mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, where the body of Benedict, who died Saturday at the age of 95, was being prepared for three days of public viewing in the same church from Monday, Reuters reports.
On Sunday, the Vatican released the first photos of the late Benedict, showing him dressed in red and gold liturgical vestments, and sprawled in the chapel of the monastery where he died.
His body will be transported privately to the Church, unlike after the death of Pope John Paul in 2005, whose body was transported in a solemn procession in the open air that was broadcast live around the world.
In accordance with Benedict’s wishes, his funeral on Thursday will be simple and solemn. This would be the first time in many centuries that a seated Baba presided over the funeral of his predecessor. Benedict, who resigned in 2013, was the first pope in 600 years to resign.
Benedict was remembered at one of the prayers of the Mass.
In his homily, Francis urged his listeners to work actively for peace, not to “waste time glued to a keyboard in front of a computer screen” but to “get our hands dirty and do some good.”
The Vatican released Saturday night the two-page “spiritual testament” of Benedict that he wrote in 2006, a year after he was elected pope. There was no explanation why Benedict had not updated him because he was getting older and more frail.