Newly elected Pope Francis will visit his predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who is currently still staying at the summer papal residence at Castel Gandolfo. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI will continue to reside there until the former Mater Ecclesiae monastery at the Vatican completes its renovation.
The vestments above is the vestment that Pope Francis will wear at the Papal Inauguration Mass in St. Peter’s Square, on the Feast of St. Joseph, Tuesday, 19 March 2013 at 9.30 am Rome time.
The vestments are decent and not over-simplistic, but neither overbearing, while maintaining the beauty of the vesture, which will make the liturgy of the Mass more beautiful and bring people closer to God.
(Update : It seems that Pope Francis chose to wear his personal mitre and the matching vestments that comes with his mitre (as bishop))
This is the coat of arms of Cardinal Jorge Maria Bergoglio, S.J., Metropolitan Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina, who was elected as the 266th Pope and Bishop of Rome last Wednesday, 13 March 2013 and chosen the name Pope Francis.
Pope Francis used his episcopal motto “Miserando atque Eligendo” which means “Lowly but chosen” in English, in line with his views and outlook on humility.
The Cardinal’s fifteen red tassels and the galero on top of it will be replaced by the papal arms standard including the papal tiara/mitre and the crossed keys of the kingdom of heaven (silver and gold).
The symbols that appeared on the shield are first, the IHS symbol surrounded with a sun-like ray is the symbol of the Jesuit order (S.J.) of which Pope Francis is a member of, and the star on the bottom-left, in conjunction with the blue colouration of the shield represents the Virgin Mary, and the grape on the bottom right represents Jesus Christ, as the grower of the vineyard of the Lord.
Pope Francis visited his first parish in the Diocese of Rome today, Sunday morning, 17 March 2013 and celebrated Mass there (there are more than 300 parishes in the Diocese of Rome).
At noon, he returned to the Papal Apartments at the Vatican to deliver his very first Sunday Angelus to thousands gathered in St. Peter’s Square.
On his first day as Pope, on Thursday morning, 14 March 2013, Pope Francis made his surprise visit to the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore (St. Mary Major) to ask for the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary for his Pontificate.
Yesterday, besides being the day when our new Pope, Pope Francis was elected the 266th Pope and the 265th Successor of St. Peter the Apostle, was another joyous day.
http://www.gcatholic.org/dioceses/nunciature/nunc152.htm#8848
This is because, Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli, Apostolic Nuncio to Singapore, who was born on 13 March 1953, celebrated his 60th anniversary yesterday.
Let us pray together for Archbishop Girelli, that God will continue to shower him with His love and strength, that he will continue to faithfully carry out the mission that has been entrusted to him as the representative of the Holy See to Singapore, Vietnam, and to ASEAN.
Ad multos annos, Your Excellency!
On the beginning of the 2013 Papal Conclave, there are 207 Cardinals in total, out of which 117 are Cardinal-electors (including Cardinal Walter Kasper who turned 80 during the Sede Vacante) and 90 Cardinal non-electors (over 80)
With the election of the Metropolitan Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Cardinal Jorge Maria Bergoglio to the position of the Bishop of Rome, as Pope Francis, the 266th Pope and Bishop of Rome, and with Cardinal Walter Kasper, being already over 80, lost his voting rights in any future Conclave :
The current College of Cardinals as of Thursday, 14 March 2013 consists of 206 Cardinals, out of which 115 are Cardinal-electors, and 91 are Cardinal non-electors.
Our new Pope, Pope Francis will be busy in his first day as Pope, and here is the list of his appointments for the first days of his Pontificate :
1. First Mass with the Cardinals at the Sistine Chapel, Thursday, 14 March 2013 at 5 pm Rome time (UTC+1)
2. Private visit to Papal Basilica of St. Mary Major / Santa Maria Maggiore to ask for the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary
3. Meeting with all Cardinals in the Clementine Hall / Sala Clementina, on Friday, 15 March 2013 at 11 am Rome time (UTC+1)
4. Audience for journalists and media representatives in Hall of Paul VI, on Saturday, 16 March 2013
5. First Angelus on Sunday, 17 March 2013 at 12 pm (Noon/Midday)
6. Papal Inauguration Mass at St. Peter’s Square on Tuesday, 19 March 2013 at 9.30 am Rome time (UTC+1), Feast of St. Joseph
The official video released by the Vatican in YouTube, with full coverage of the election of the Metropolitan Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Jorge Maria Cardinal Bergoglio as Pope Francis, 266th Pope and Bishop of Rome, and the 265th Successor of St. Peter the Apostle.
The Papal Inauguration Mass of the Pontificate of Pope Francis I, Jorge Maria Bergoglio, who was the Metropolitan Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and elected the 266th Pope on Wednesday, 13 March 2013, will be held on :
Feast of St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Tuesday, 19 March 2013, at 9.30 am Rome time (CET/UTC+1)
The timing in other timezones are :
1. UTC : Tuesday, 19 March 2013 at 8.30 am
2. EDT : Tuesday, 19 March 2013 at 4.30 am
3. PDT : Tuesday, 19 March 2013 at 1.30 am
4. WIB / UTC+7 : Tuesday, 19 March 2013 at 3.30 pm
5. Singapore / UTC+8 : Tuesday, 19 March 2013 at 4.30 pm
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