Romanian Catholics mourn Pope Francis with special mass and prayers

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Catholics in the northeastern Romanian commune of Răducăneni have gathered to mourn the death of Pope Francis with a special mass and prayer service in his memory. 

Around 700 Catholic families live in Răducăneni, located 60 kilometres from the city of Iași. Romania is an overwhelmingly Orthodox Christian country, where Catholics make up only about 4% of the population. 

Parishioners at Răducăneni’s local church lit candles and joined priests in praying for the late Argentine pontiff, who led the Catholic Church for 12 years. He died on Easter Monday at the age of 88 after suffering a stroke that led to a coma and heart failure.

"The Catholic world and beyond is certainly in mourning. The death of Pope Francis has affected us all," said parishioner Ionuț Bișog. 

Following the church service, the community gathered in the cemetery, where priests led prayers. Church bells from the Diocese of Iași will ring daily at noon during the official mourning period. 

Pope Francis visited the region in 2019 during a historic trip to Romania. Around 150,000 people crowded the streets of Iași for the occasion, including many from Răducăneni. 

Cecilia Lupu, 83, still treasures a photograph of Pope Francis tucked inside her prayer book. "He died, bless him. I cried in the church during the requiem," she told Euronews. 

Parishioners recall the 2019 visit with reverence. "He was the pope of mercy, the pope of love, the pope of the poor," said Liliana Augustin.

"He was a very humble man," said Eduard Bișog. "A man of extraordinary intrinsic goodness."

Romanian leaders including interim President Ilie Bolojan and Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu paid tribute to Pope Francis this week.

"In these moments of mourning and profound sadness, I extend my condolences to the Catholics of Romania and around the world, as well as to all those for whom Pope Francis was a guiding spiritual beacon," Bolojan wrote on X on Monday.