Hundreds of thousands of mourners, including world leaders, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. among them, packed St. Peter’s Square on Saturday for the funeral of Pope Francis, the “pope among the people.”

Some people waited overnight to get a seat for the ceremony, with the Vatican reporting some 200,000 people in the square and surrounding streets.

The crowds, packed with young people, applauded as white-gloved pallbearers, accompanied by more than 200 red-robed cardinals, carried the Pope’s coffin out of St. Peter’s Basilica.

Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re said in his funeral homily that Francis was “a pope among the people, with an open heart” who strove for a more compassionate, open-minded Catholic Church.

There was applause as he hailed the Pope’s “conviction that the Church is a home for all, with its doors always open.”

Leaders praise symbol of simplicity

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos represented millions of Filipino Catholics at the funeral. They joined more than 50 other heads of state and 10 monarchs in St. Peter’s Square.

The First Couple recalled the time they met the leader of the Catholic Church.

“When I met him, he was humble and kind, and I felt blessed by God,” the First Lady said.

The trip to the Vatican was bittersweet as the First Couple recalled cementing their affection for each other in Italy more than three decades ago.

The President and the First Lady tied the knot at the San Francesco Convent in Fiesole, Italy on 17 April 1993.

Ready for needy

During his visit to the Philippines in January 2015, Pope Francis offered solace and support to the victims of 2013’s super typhoon “Yolanda” and celebrated the Filipinos’ resilience.

Francis, known for his remarkable simplicity and humility throughout his leadership, made history on 13 March 2013 as the first Jesuit, first Latin American, and the first non-European to be elected head of the Roman Catholic Church in more than 1,200 years.

He adopted the name Francis in honor of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of the poor.

Many of the more than 50 heads of state attending the funeral had entered the Basilica beforehand to pay their respects before the coffin of the Argentine pontiff, who died on Monday aged 88.

Guests included Argentina’s President Javier Milei, Britain’s Prince William, and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky. Zelensky met with US President Donald Trump shortly beforehand, their first encounter since February’s Oval Office clash.

During his 12-year papacy, Francis sought to steer the centuries-old Church toward a more inclusive future, and his death prompted a global outpouring of emotion.

“I’m touched by how many people are here. It’s beautiful to see all these nationalities together,” said Jeremie Metais, 29, from Grenoble, France. “It’s a bit like the center of the world today.”

Italian and Vatican authorities mounted a major security operation for the ceremony, with fighter jets on standby and snipers on the roofs surrounding the tiny city-state.

After St. Peter’s bells tolled, the crowd was largely silent, watching the proceedings on several large screens around the square.

The funeral set off the first of nine days of official Vatican mourning for Francis, who took over following Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation in 2013.

After the mourning, the cardinals will gather for the conclave to elect a new pope to lead the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.

Bridges not walls

Many of Francis’s reforms angered traditionalists, while his criticism of injustices, from the treatment of migrants to the damage wrought by global warming, riled many world leaders.

Yet the former archbishop of Buenos Aires’ compassion and charisma earned him global affection and respect.

“His gestures and exhortations in favor of refugees and displaced persons are countless,” Cardinal Battista Re said.

He recalled the first trip of Francis’s papacy to Lampedusa. The Italian island is often the first port of call for migrants crossing the Mediterranean. He also cited the Pope’s celebrating mass on the border between Mexico and the US.

US President Trump’s administration drew the Pontiff’s ire for its mass deportation of migrants, but the President has paid tribute to “a good man” who “loved the world.”

Making the first foreign trip of his second term, Trump sat among dozens of leaders from other countries — many of them keen to bend his ear over the trade war he unleashed, among other subjects.

The White House said Saturday the President had a “very productive” meeting with Ukraine President Zelensky before the funeral.

Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, also attended, alongside UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, France’s Emmanuel Macron and Lebanon’s Joseph Aoun.

China, which does not have formal relations with the Vatican, did not send a representative.

Israel, angered by Francis’s criticism of its conduct in Gaza, sent its Holy See ambassador.

In the homily, Battista Re highlighted Francis’ incessant calls for peace and said he urged “reason and honest negotiation” to end conflicts raging around the world.

“’Build bridges, not walls’ was an exhortation he repeated many times,” the cardinal said, to an

audience that included Italy’s nationalist prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, and Hungary’s Viktor Orban.