Thousands Endure Endless Lines for Fleeting Moments: Global Mourners Brave Cold, Chaos to Glimpse Pope Francis One Last Time

“He was very important for us,” one student waiting in line tells PEOPLE

Mourners in line to pay their respects to Pope Francis on Wednesday, April 23. Photo: Grzegorz Galazka/Archivio Grzegorz Galazka/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty

Thousands of mourners are lining up to say goodbye to Pope Francis ahead of his funeral.

On Wednesday, April 23, two days after Francis died at the age of 88, the late pope’s body was taken from his residence at the Casa Santa Marta to St. Peter’s Basilica, where he will lie in state for three days.

As his coffin was carried into St. Peter’s Basilica, over 20,000 people erupted into “subdued but sustained applause,” according to the Vatican.

A group of cardinals were the first to pay their respects, but then it was time for the public to start filing in, and according to CBS News, many in line waited four hours or more.

Crowds of mourners waiting outside to enter St. Peter’s Basilica.Mario Tama/Getty

Speaking from the line, where she’d already been standing for over two hours, student Sophia Cabello tells PEOPLE that even though the wait is long, as a Catholic, it was important to see Francis, especially since he’d been the pope for most of her life.

“It was his compassion that really brought people to him,” adds the University of Dallas student who is studying abroad in Rome. “Even people who aren’t necessarily religious, people who aren’t Catholic, I’ve seen giving condolences and really appreciating what he did in his life.”

“He was very important for us, so it only makes sense that we would be wanting to do as much as we can, pray as much as we can, love and pray for his soul as much as we can,” Cabello adds. “It kind of feels unifying in a way, that people from all different parts of the world are coming just for this. It’s a very special moment.”

The body of Pope Francis lies inside St. Peter’s Basilica on April 23, 2025.ANDREW MEDICHINI/POOL/AFP via Getty

Natalie, another student from Texas studying abroad, tells PEOPLE she valued the pope’s ability to “listen to both sides”

“I think it’s evident that he’s brought the world together today because the world is all coming together to grieve his death, despite our different opinions,” adds Nathalie.

Meanwhile Clive, who hails from the Philippines says Francis encouraged “people to be closer to the Church, especially the young.”

“I think it’s a very beautiful moment for everyone to be here because of him,” he adds.

Brazilian national Brinna Bitenco, 40, told CNN that it was a “really beautiful scene” in the basilica, but seeing Francis’ coffin was “emotional.”

“I really wish I could have seen him alive, he’s such a special person. Lying there it seems like an Angel is there, not a person. But he’s now in a better place, better than the rest of us,” added Bitenco.

Another mourner described the experience of finally getting their chance to see the pontiff as “powerful,” but a little “frustrating.”

“You only have one second, so there is no time to pray,” Victoria Risso from France, who waited for more than three hours with her husband and children, told CNN, which reported that about 50 people pass by the coffin every minute.

The Vatican previously stated that it has not ruled out the possibility of extending the opening of St. Peter’s Basilica beyond midnight, given the “large number of faithful wishing to pay homage to the Holy Father.”