Mighty and meek attend Pope Francis’ funeral, a ceremony he helped reimagine

World leaders and Catholic faithful bade farewell to Pope Francis in a funeral Saturday reflecting his priorities as pope and wishes as pastor. Though presidents and princes attended the Mass in St. Peter’s Square, prisoners and migrants will welcome him into the basilica across town where he will be laid to rest. Tens of thousands flocked to the funeral, which Francis choreographed himself when he revised and simplified the Vatican’s rites and rituals last year. His aim was to emphasize the pope’s role as a mere pastor and not “a powerful man of this world.” It was a reflection of Francis’ 12-year project to radically reform the papacy, to stress priests as servants and to construct “a poor church for the poor.” He articulated the mission just days after his 2013 election and it explained the name he chose as pope, honoring St. Francis of Assisi “who had the heart of the poor of the world,” according to the official decree of the pope’s life that was placed in his simple wooden coffin before it was sealed Friday night. Despite Francis’ focus on the powerless, the

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