In St. Peter's Basilica, the body of late Pope Benedict XVI is on display for public adoration and sadness.
According to Vatican insiders, Pope Benedict XVI, who passed away on Saturday at the age of 95, was conscious right up until the end of his life.
The nurse who was attending to the deceased pope at around three in the morning on December 31 recorded his final words. He needed continual attention at the moment, but he wasn't yet confused.
Pope Benedict XVI has away at age 95, the Vatican announced.
Vatican News was informed by Archbishop Georg Gänswein, Benedict's personal secretary, "[Benedict] uttered in Italian, "Lord, I love you," in a voice that was hardly audible but was nevertheless audible. Although I wasn't there at the time, the nurse informed me about it shortly after."
These were his final understandable words, he said, for he was subsequently unable to communicate.
Through his teachings, POPE BENEDICT'S VISION FOR CATHOLICISM, VATICAN II, AND THE FUTURE OF THE CHURCH endures.
In a 9:34 a.m. announcement, the Vatican noted that Benedict had died away. At 95 years old, he was.
The late pope's body is currently being kept in Vatican City's Mater Ecclesiae Monastery, where he spent the most of his life after becoming pope.
Italian authorities expected 30,000 visitors on the first day that Pope Emeritus Benedict's body would be on display. St. Peter's Basilica saw 65,000 visitors by the conclusion of the evening.
The body was taken to its final resting place in front of the main altar by ten Papal Gentlemen, the Pope's lay aides, as the day began.
As Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI's body lies in state at the Vatican, crowds gather.
Prayers were said and Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, the basilica's archpriest, splashed holy water over the body before the entire public was let inside. Benedict had his hands together and a rosary wrapped around his fingers.
The Vatican confirmed the burial arrangements on Monday. In accordance with his desires, Benedict will be buried in the grotto beneath the basilica where St. John Paul II's body was previously interred until it was taken there for his 2011 beatification, according to Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni.
According to the Vatican, Pope Francis will officiate at the late pope's funeral mass in St. Peter's Square on January 5.
