HUNDREDS of thousands of mourners are expected to line the streets of the Vatican as the funeral of Pope Francis takes place this weekend.
His holiness, who died on Easter Monday, April 21, at the age of 88, will be laid to rest in an open-air ceremony held outside St Peter’s Basillica at 9am on Saturday, April 26.
Irish President Michael D Higgins, Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Simon Harris are among the world leaders due to attend the service, which will be presided over by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals.
The Pope’s body will lie in state at St Peter’s Basilica until tomorrow eveningFor the millions of Catholics in mourning across the world who are unable to travel to the Vatican, the service will be screened on a range of international television channels including RTÉ and the BBC, as well as being broadcast live on the Vatican News You Tube channel.
RTÉ has confirmed it will have live coverage on television, radio and online, which will begin at 8.30am on RTÉ One and RTE Player.
David McCullagh and Sharon Ní Bheoláin will present a special programme featuring coverage of the funeral, with Áine Lawlor and Fr Michael Collins providing commentary of the ceremony.
On RTÉ Radio 1, special coverage of the funeral will be presented by Dearbhail McDonald from 8.30am on Saturday, with Colm Ó Mongáin and Fr Thomas McCarthy providing live radio commentary.
Mourners walk next to the coffin as they pay their respects to late Pope Francis inside St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican (PIcs: Getty)“The RTÉ News channel will broadcast wider coverage of events from early morning,” the broadcaster has confirmed.
Yesterday the Pope’s body was taken from the Vatican apartment where he had lived since his papacy began in 2013, and brought to St Peter’s Basilica where it will lie in state until Friday evening.
At 8pm tomorrow Irish Cardinal Kevin Farrell will preside over the rite of the closing of the coffin, the Vatican has confirmed.
As camerlengo of the Catholic church, Dublin-born Cardinal Farrell’s responsibilities include overseeing certain rites connected to the papal funeral as well as preparing for the conclave and administering the affairs of the Holy See during the ‘sede vacante’, the period between popes.
The Vatican has been streaming much of the rites which has taken place since the Pope’s death on its You Tube channel.