St. John XXIII is leaving St. Peter's Basilica temporarily and returning to his homeland.
CARD. ANGELO COMASTRI
“We're here united in prayer to present the bishop of Bergamo with the casket containing the remains of the venerated St. John XXIII, who is returning to his homeland. They are returning to Sotto il Monte, where, as a child, the future pontiff breathed the faith thanks to the beautiful example of his parents.”
The remains of John XXIII were in the Vatican Grottos until he was beatified in 2001, and were later moved to one of the basilica's chapels.
They now return to Sotto il Monte until June 10. Pope Francis made the request so that the good pope could be venerated by those unable to travel to Rome, especially the elderly, sick and poor.
Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli was born in Sotto il Monte, a small town in northern Italy, on November 25, 1881.
With this solemn procession first thing in the morning, the body of St. John XXIII was loaded into the vehicle that carried him on a roadway trip to his homeland.
It's the second time the remains of a canonized pope have left St. Peter's Basilica. Previously, only those of St. Pio X had returned to Venice in 1959 at the request of then-pope John XXIII himself.
