Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, one of the foremost theologians of the 20th century and the first pontiff in nearly 600 years to resign from the papacy, was laid to rest Thursday following a funeral Mass attended by tens of thousands of people.
Here are scenes from the funeral, held outside in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican on a cold, foggy morning in Rome:
The coffin of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI is carried into St. Peter’s Square prior to his funeral Mass on Jan. 5, 2023. Daniel Ibañez/CNA
Pallbearers carry the coffin of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI before his funeral Mass in St. Peter’s Square on Jan. 5, 2023. Daniel Ibañez/CNA
Cardinals seated in St. Peter’s Square on Jan. 5, 2023 for the funeral Mass for Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. Daniel Ibañez/CNA
Archbishop Georg Gänswein (right), the longtime personal secretary for Benedict XVI, kneels to kiss the book of the Gospels atop the coffin of the pope emeritus on Jan. 5, 2023, in St. Peter’s Square. Daniel Ibañez/CNA
Cardinal Joseph Zen, former bishop of Hong Hong, attends the funeral Mass for Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI on Jan. 5, 2023, in St. Peter’s Square. Credit: Diane Montagna
Cardinal Joseph Zen, former bishop of Hong Hong (second from left), attends the funeral Mass for Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI on Jan. 5, 2023, in St. Peter’s Square. Alan Koppschall/EWTNPope Francis delivers the homily at the funeral Mass for Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI in St. Peter’s Square on Jan. 5, 2023. Daniel Ibañez/CNA
The coffin of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI is incensed during his funeral Mass in St. Peter’s Square on Jan. 5, 2023, as Pope Francis looks on. Daniel Ibañez/CNA
Pilgrims from Bavaria pose at St. Peter’s Square where the funeral Mass for Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, a native Bavarian, took place on Jan. 5, 2023. Courtney Mares/CNA
The funeral for Pope Benedict XVI on Jan. 5, 2023, at the Vatican. Vatican Media
Archbishop Georg Ganswein (left), longtime personal secretary of Pope Benedict XVI, kisses the coffin of friend and mentor at his funeral on Jan. 5, 2023, at the Vatican. Vatican Media
Cardinals attend the funeral of Pope Benedict XVI on Jan. 5, 2023. Vatican Media
The coffin of Pope Benedict XVI is carried at his funeral Mass on Jan. 5, 2023, at the Vatican. Vatican Media
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Sacred art under construction at Centro Aletti. / Credit: Vaticano/EWTN News
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Vatican City, Jun 7, 2018 / 10:10 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Organizers of the international “Share the Journey” campaign are urging Catholics to step up and interact with migrants and refugees through shared meals or other activities as part of a global action week.
“We invite you to sit down together with migrants and refugees in your community, to look into their eyes, listen to their stories and to share your own,” Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle said in a press release on the initiative.
The cardinal, who serves as archbishop of Manila and is also the president of papal charity organization Caritas Internationalis, said each person’s journey starts “with a moment of sharing which helps us recognize the bonds which bind the whole of humanity together.”
“We are invited to have compassion and courage to open our hearts and minds to the people we don’t yet know and to share the journey with them.”
The Global Action Week will take place June 17-24 and is part of the wider, two-year Share the Journey campaign, which was launched by Caritas Internationalis in September 2017 with the goal of encouraging a “culture of encounter” and bolstering efforts to warmly welcome immigrants and refugees.
The project also aims to shed light on both the challenges and effects of migration at every stage of the journey in order to promote a “shift in thinking” on the issue. It has the support of the ACT Alliance, which is a network of 145 Christian agencies and a variety of other religious congregations and civil society groups worldwide.
As part of the action week, Caritas branches in all regions of the world will organize shared meals with immigrants and refugees, as well as other events aimed at providing opportunities for interaction.
In Rome, the Caritas soup kitchen at Termini, the city’s main train station, will host a meal with migrants and refugees June 19.
They have also promoted other activities, like the “My Mirror” social experiment promoted by Caritas Ambrosiana in Milan, which encourages strangers to look into each other’s eyes as a means of breaking down barriers.
Caritas Cyprus also organized a handbag event for women, giving each woman who came a handbag full of basic toiletries.
In the U.S., the bishops’ conference as well as Caritas organizations like Catholic Relief Services and Catholic Charities USA have promoted the campaign as a way for Catholics to pray for migrants and refugees and make concrete acts to help them.
In one activity, Catholic Relief Services partnered with a local clothing store, which agreed to donate 20 percent of all sock sales to the organization’s work with migrants and refugees.
The official website for the Share the Journey campaign in the U.S. is: www.sharethejourney.org.
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