Cliff Notes
- A large crowd gathered at St Peter’s Square early in the morning for an extraordinary funeral, with long queues forming before dawn, marking a departure from the usual quiet surroundings.
- Unexpectedly, the atmosphere was lively, with teenagers from church youth groups gathered on the ground playing Uno and cheering for President Zelenskyy, who received significant applause.
- Discussions during the event raised questions about the potential legacy of Pope Francis, with a call for his progressive reforms to continue with the next papal successor, emphasising the need for inclusion and unity in society.
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WTX Europe correspondent in Italy.
It was a typically dark start to the day when we arrived in the early hours of the morning to cover the Pope’s funeral.
Normally, the streets around the Vatican are quiet at that time, dotted with a few rough sleepers and passing security personnel. But not this time.
Via della Conciliazione is the road that runs from the Tiber all the way up to St Peter’s Square and, before the sun had risen, there were long queues to get through the checkpoint and secure a prime viewing location for the Pope’s funeral.
When the gates were opened, and as more and more people came through, the rush became greater.
A trickle became a torrent – first people strolled towards the front, then they jogged and then, eventually, I saw three nuns, sprinting as fast as they could.
But what I had expected to see in St Peter’s Square was not, in fact, what I did see.
I thought I’d bear witness to a lot of sobbing and sadness. Instead, in our section of St Peter’s Square, we were surrounded by dozens of teenagers; all affiliated with church youth groups, sitting on the ground and playing Uno.
They stayed for the day, watching on the big screens along with the rest of the crowd.
They applauded, watched patiently and then, when they saw President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, cheered their approval.
Nobody, other than the Pope, got a warmer ovation than the Ukrainian president.
What we didn’t know at the time was that Zelensky had just met Donald Trump, nor that Trump had second thoughts about Vladimir Putin’s reliability. But come the end of the service, the news had filtered through.
So could the funeral have been a catalyst for an outbreak of peace, or at least a step or two in the right direction?
“Well that would be some legacy indeed from Pope Francis wouldn’t it? And most people would hope that’s the case,” she said.
So does she worry that the Catholic Church will choose a more conservative successor to Pope Francis, I asked? Would she rather a Pope who continues Francis’s path of reform and, by comparison with his predecessor, liberal thinking. She nods, smiling.
“I think that his legacy is something that we want to be able to carry on.
“We want him to be a living legacy. I hope the incoming Pope has the same qualities, that same approach to the leadership role they provide.
“I think Pope Francis is a lesson to so many people in terms of what we need, which is inclusion. What we need is a more unified society.”
