Thousands of people visit Pope Francis Tomb in Rome Day after the funeral

The modest grave attracts huge queues on the first day of the public’s vision one day after tens of thousands attended its funeral.

Thousands of mourning people met in Rome to pay tribute to the tomb of Pope Francis, one day after his funeral attracted world leaders and hundreds of thousands of faithful.

On Sunday, queues were seen on the tomb, which opened the second of nine days of official mourning to the public, with a conclave to select his expected successor between May 5 and 10.

Apart from the St Mary Major basilica, the bailiffs urged visitors to continue to move to allow the constant flow of people a chance to say goodbye.

The Argentinian pontiff, who died on April 21 at the age of 88, was buried in a modest grave in white marble near an icon of Madonna which he venerated deeply.

“For me, Pope Francis was an inspiration, a guide,” said Elias Caravalhal, a resident in Rome who missed the state in St Peter’s Basilica but came to offer thanks to the grave, told the Associated Press press agency.

Polish pilgrim Maria Brzezinska, reflecting on the simplicity of the site, said: “It’s exactly the Pope’s path. It was simple, just like its place now.”

Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell (L), Camerlengo of the Roman Roman Church, presiding over the fence of the late Pope Francis in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, Italy. (File: Media handout of the Vatican / EPA-EFE) — Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell, on the left, Camerlengo of the Roman Roman Holy Church, presiding over the fence of the late Pope Francis in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome (file: handout of the Vatican / Epa-Efe media)

Breaking with a centenary tradition, Francis has chosen to be buried outside the Vatican, selecting the multicultural heart of Rome as its last place of rest.

Earlier Sunday, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of the Vatican and a probable competitor to become the next Pope, led a special mass to Saint-Pierre.

Speaking in front of a crowd estimated at 200,000, including many young pilgrims who had initially gathered for the expected canonization of Carlo Acutis, the Paroline paid tribute to Francis.

“The shepherd that the Lord gave to his people, Pope Francis, ended his earthly life and left us,” he said. “The sorrow at his departure, the feeling of sadness that began us … We live all this.”

Among these mourning was SusMidah Murphy from Kerala, India. “It is incredible that he is no longer with us,” she said. “It’s sad. We do not very often get popes like that. ”

The cardinals who arrived in Rome will meet throughout the week to trace the future course of the Roman Catholic Church of $ 1.4 billion.

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