Pope Francis died on the 21st (local time), prompting the Argentine government, his home country, to declare a seven-day national mourning period.
According to foreign reports including Reuters and AFP, a special mass was held that day at the cathedral in Buenos Aires, Argentina, to honor Pope Francis, who passed away at the age of 88.
The cathedral where the mass was held was adorned with photographs of Pope Francis and bouquets of flowers, while some citizens mourned for the pope by lighting candles outside the cathedral. Buenos Aires is where Pope Francis once served as archbishop.
Jorge García Cuerva, the current archbishop of Buenos Aires, said during the mass, "The pope who was the pope of the poor, the pope of the marginalized, has departed from us."
Archbishop Cuerva emphasized, "The pope was our father, the father of the poor, the father of mercy," adding, "The greatest tribute we Argentines can pay to Francis is to become one."
The Argentine government announced that it would declare a seven-day national mourning period following the death of Pope Francis.
Pope Francis was born in 1936 as the eldest of five siblings in an Italian immigrant family in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He worked in the slums of Buenos Aires during his time as bishop and cardinal, visiting impoverished areas without concern, even in places where drugs were rampant and violence was common.
As the first pope from a non-European country and from the New World in 1282 years, he has been regarded as the most progressive among all popes.