Vatican City, Jan 5, 2023 / 08:14 am
The Vatican on Thursday shared the first photos of the private ritual for the closing of Benedict XVI’s coffin.
The casket was closed in St. Peter’s Basilica on the evening of Jan. 4 after three days of public visitation to the late pope’s body.
Before the wooden coffin was closed, Benedict XVI’s personal secretary, Archbishop Georg Gänswein, and Monsignor Diego Giovanni Ravelli, the Vatican’s lead master of ceremonies for papal liturgies, placed a white veil over the late pope’s face. The action is part of the funeral rites for popes.
This is how the private ritual for the closing of Benedict XVI's coffin took place. The casket was closed on the evening of Jan. 4. Archbishop Gänswein and Mons. Ravelli placed a white veil over the late pope's face. The action is part of the funeral rites for popes. pic.twitter.com/zMNu6ABxA9
— EWTN News (@EWTNews) January 5, 2023