Pope Benedict to pray by predecessors tombs
Pope Benedict XVI today said he would pray by the tombs of past Popes in the grottoes beneath St. Peter’s Basilica on All Souls’ Day, and would give a special thought to the “beloved” Pope John Paul II.
Benedict made the remarks during his traditional blessing on All Saints Day, one day before All Souls’ – a church holiday also known as the Day of the Dead in which Catholics are called on to pray by the graves of loved ones.
“Joining spiritually all those who will go to cemeteries to pray for their dead, I too tomorrow afternoon will gather in prayer in the Vatican grottoes by the tombs of the popes, that form a crown around the sepulcher of the apostle Peter, and I will have a special thought for the beloved John Paul II,” Benedict said today, addressing the crowds below from his window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
