The President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Souza, confirmed on Tuesday that he will be in Funeral ceremony of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI “on behalf of the Portuguese State” and not in a personal capacity.
“As far as I know, the Holy See treats all heads of state equally. I am a head of state, and I am treated as a head of state. It is not the citizen who goes there. If I were a native, of course I wouldn’t go there,” he reasoned On his arrival in Portugal, from Brasilia, he witnessed the inauguration of Brazil’s new gift, Lula da Silva.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa also considered it important to represent Portugal at the funeral ceremonies for Benedict XVI, since, in August, Lisbon hosts World Youth Day.
“The Portuguese state will have to be represented for a very simple reason: Portugal will organize World Youth Day here. This is a very important fact in relations with the Catholic Church and the Holy See, and it has a universal projection. That fact justifies my going there.”
Pope Benedict XVI’s funeral service is scheduled for Thursday in St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican at 9:30 am local time (8:30 am in Lisbon). It is up to Pope Francis to preside over the ceremonies.
Only government and presidential delegations from Italy and Germany, the country where Benedict XVI was born, will officially take part in the ceremony.
a Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who died on December 31 at the age of 95She will be buried in the tomb once occupied by John Paul II in a crypt reserved for popes under St. Peter’s Basilica, according to a Vatican spokesperson.
Matteo Bruni explained that Benedict XVI left in writing – as reported by his biographer, Peter Seewald – wishing to be buried in that Vatican underground occupied by the remains of his predecessor, John Paul II, until May 2011, when the urn was again unveiled. in St. Peter’s Basilica, after being canonized by the German Pope.
The cemetery that will be the tomb of the Pope Emeritus also belongs to Pope John XXIII and is located a few meters from San Pedro and opposite the tombs of the two queens, Christina of Sweden and Carlotta of Cyprus.
Benedict XVI, like John Paul II, will have a simple white marble tombstone with the years of his pontificate (2005-2013) inscribed in Latin.
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