Cardinal Angelo Sodano presided over the funeral of Jean-Louis Tauran, the prestigious camerlengo cardinal who died on July 5 while receiving medical treatment in the U.S.
Many wished to participate in Tauran's farewell, including Pope Francis, despite being on vacation and the protocol only requiring him to give the final blessing.
In addition, Muslim representatives also attended as a show of gratitude for the cardinal's work in the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue.
CARD. ANGELO SODANO
Cardinal Dean
“It was right that today so many of us would participate to give thanks to the Lord for having given him to us, repeating St. Augustine's famous prayer: Lord, we aren't sorry because you took him from us, rather we give You thanks for giving him to us.”
Following the ceremony, the pope blessed the cardinal's remains with Holy Water, and bid them farewell with incense. It was a powerful gesture of gratitude to this loyal collaborator for three popes.
Cardinal Tauran was John Paul II's foreign minister; Benedict XVI named him prefect of the Pontifical Council of Interreligious Dialogue, and Pope Francis made him camerlengo.
