Marcos to attend Pope Francis funeral

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. will attend the funeral of Pope Francis in Vatican City.

This was disclosed by Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro.

Marcos will go there with First Lady Louise “Liza” Araneta-Marcos.

The Philippine President was in deep sorrow at the death of Pope Francis as he acknowledged the latter as the “best Pope” in his lifetime.

Marcos had described Pope Francis as a “man of profound faith and humility.”

“Pope Francis led not only with wisdom but with a heart open to all, especially the poor and the forgotten,” Marcos said in an earlier statement.

“By example, Pope Francis taught us that to be a good Christian is to extend kindness and care to one another,” he added.

For her part, the First Lady also mourned Pope Francis’ death, saying that she had met a saint on earth through the highest Catholic Church leader.

“Now heaven welcomes him home. Thank you, Pope Francis," the First Lady said in her post, which included a picture of her meeting with the Pontiff.

On Monday, the Vatican earlier announced the passing of Pope Francis. He was 88 and had a serious bout of double pneumonia. According to Vatican doctor Andrea Arcangeli in a death certificate, Pope Francis died of a stroke and irreversible heart failure.

Born as Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Pope Francis was elected Supreme Pontiff on March 13, 2013. He became the first pope from the Americas and the first Jesuit to hold the said position.

Pope Francis, fondly called Lolo Kiko by Filipinos, visited the Philippines in 2015.

He celebrated Mass at the Manila Cathedral as well as in the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas.

The Pontiff also held an outdoor Mass in Tacloban City despite strong rains and powerful winds brought about by an approaching storm.

In his will drafted in 2022, Pope Francis asked to be buried in a simple, unadorned tomb inside his beloved Roman basilica, Santa Maria Maggiore. It was this basilica where Pope Francis prayed before and after every trip he took as pontiff.

The funeral service for Pope Francis will be held on Saturday, April 26, at 10 a.m. Vatican time in St. Peter's Square, in the shadow of the Basilica, on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. (0800 GMT). —KG, GMA Integrated News