Over 20,000 Visit Pope Francis' Tomb at Saint Mary Major as Cardinals Pray Vespers Honoring the Late Pontiff Before the Conclave - VIDEO

This afternoon the procession of the cardinals, gathered in the General Congregations in view of the Conclave, to visit the tomb of Francis and celebrate the second Vespers, presided over by Cardinal Rolandas Makrickas (Lithuania). Over 20 thousand people have been queuing since this morning to "greet" the Pontiff, pray in front of his tombstone and deliver floral tributes, among them the "lady with the yellow flowers", Carmela Mancuso, in tears in front of the writing Franciscus
“I loved him, for me he is a saint”.

Carmelina Mancuso, the Calabrian woman known to the world as “the lady with the yellow flowers” ​​to whom the Pope dedicated his few words on March 23, the day of his discharge from Gemelli, cries in front of the tomb of Pope Francis in Santa Maria Maggiore. In a cardboard bag she holds a new bouquet – all yellow, in fact – and is in line with thousands of other people queuing up to the parvis of the Basilica on the Esquiline Hill. Over 20,000 since it opened to the public this morning at 7, according to estimates.
More than 110 cardinals gathered in Rome celebrated this afternoon for Vespers in the Mary Major Basilica. They decided in the General Congregation last Friday to organize an 'unscheduled' moment of prayer to pay homage to the Pope.
This afternoon they arrived before 4:00 pm at Santa Maria Maggiore, leaving in minibuses from the square in front of the Paul VI Hall. Flashes of photographers, shots of cameras, clicks of smartphones of the long line of faithful (including some young people from the Jubilee of Adolescents) lined up along the entire churchyard accompanied their passage through the Holy Door in procession to the tomb of the Pontiff.
Before them, Cardinal Santos Abril y Castelló, archpriest emeritus of the Basilica, who accompanied the then newly elected Pope Francis on his first visit to Santa Maria Maggiore the day after his election, had a private moment. Then, one by one or in groups of three, the cardinals stopped before the tomb. Some remained in prayer for a few minutes, reciting a Hail Mary , others made the sign of the Cross or took a photo, those who could knelt for a few moments. They all then gathered in the Pauline Chapel, next to the tomb, under the gaze of the Salus Populi Romani, who 126 times saw Francis, on his knees in the early days and in a wheelchair in his later years, say “thank you” to her for an apostolic journey to be made or successfully completed, for a medical operation that went well, for a simple greeting.
With their gaze turned toward the icon that tradition says was painted by Saint Luke, the cardinals prayed together and in silence. They passed through the gate in an orderly fashion and climbed the three steps to then line up in the central nave and pray the Second Vespers presided over by the coadjutor cardinal archpriest, Rolanda Makrickas. Groups of faithful joined them. The continuous flow of visitors, meanwhile, never stopped (just as the line in front of the confessionals did not stop) and the cell phones, first pointed at the tomb, moved to this expanse of purple skullcaps intent on singing the psalms.
The prayers were recited in different languages ​​by different priests. Prayers were prayed for Pope Francis so that "the Risen Lord may welcome him into the abode of light and peace". The whole thing lasted just over half an hour. The cardinals then left the Basilica which will remain open for the faithful until 10 pm this evening. Today is an evening of rest, tomorrow a new general congregation to prepare for the Conclave that will elect the 267th Successor of Peter.

Source Vatican News It