Austria in grief: bells ring for Pope Francis!

Austria in grief: bells ring for Pope Francis!

Wien, Österreich - All church bells in Austria ring at 5 p.m. for ten minutes in mourning for the late Pope Francis, who died at the age of 88 on April 21, 2025. This reports 5min.at. The Pummerin of St. Stephen's Cathedral heralded shortly after 10 a.m. after the Vatican had officially confirmed the Pope's death. The bourgeois name of the Pope was Jorge Mario Bergoglio.

The church entrances are also flagged over all over Austria at the mourning period. This decision was made by the chairman of the Bishops' Conference, Archbishop Franz Lackner. In order to share grief with the community, devotions, prayers and mourning fairs are celebrated in the parishes and dioceses.

Requiem in Stephansdom

A first small request takes place today at 6 p.m. in the St. St. Stephen's Cathedral, which is led by Cardinal Christoph Schönborn. The service is transferred live to "Radio Klassik Stephansdom". A large requiem that will be celebrated in the next nine days is also planned. The exact date, however, is still pending how [katholisch.at] (https://www.katholisch.at/aktuelles/152995/trauer-um-papst-franziskus-glocken-lauten-oester- oester-rich-um-5 o'clock) reports.

funeral rituals and cultural aspects

Mourning has numerous rituals in the Catholic tradition. Black as a mourning color has established itself in the European culture since the 19th century. Before that, for example, widows wore black clothes for up to one year to show their grief. Nowadays there is more flexibility. Relatives can often decide for themselves how they want to express their grief, and many find it comforting to do this through their clothes.

A common ritual after the funeral is the "body feast" or "funeral coffee", in which memories are replaced. In addition, a six -week office is traditionally celebrated as a memorial service, which is based on the four -day Lent before Easter. Relatives have the opportunity to register a measurement intention in the parish office to pray for a deceased, a custom that is closely linked to the church grief culture, such as [donbosco-magazin.eu] (https://www.donbosco-magazin.eu/glaube/feste-und-s-und-skirchliche-rund--ums mourning) describes.