Mourners at Westminster Cathedral remember Pope as ‘voice for peace’

Crowds of mourners gathered at Westminster Cathedral in central London to pay tribute to Pope Francis, after his death was announced by the Vatican on Monday morning.

Father Patrick van der Vorst led a morning service addressing the Pope’s “symbolic” passing on Easter Monday.

Mourners entered, filing past a commemorative display lined with candles around a photo of the late pontiff.

“He was always there to serve the poor”, Father van der Vorst told the congregation.

Barbara Keeley, the Labour peer and former frontbench MP, spoke to the PA news agency as she left the cathedral.

“During a time of war in the world, he was a voice for peace and supporting those who are suffering,” she said.

Having risen from humble beginnings, Pope Francis became the first Latin-American pontiff in 2013.

He was known for driving the church in a more progressive direction during his tenure, clashing at times with traditionalists in the Vatican.

Catholic churchgoers at Westminster Cathedral were joined by mourners from a wide range of faiths and backgrounds paying their respects.

Patrick Somerville, 87, from Westminster, noted the diversity of those present, saying: “He (Pope Francis) has had a worldwide impact on all leaders and all peoples.

“I spoke this morning to my newsagent who told me his mother, who is a Hindu, loved Pope Francis and I think that says it all.

“He brought love to the whole world in a humble way.”

Michael McBride, 61, from Cyprus, said: “He did a very good job reconciling all the religions, whether they were Muslim or Christian.”

He added: “A good man trying to unite everyone.”

Georgette Presto, 71, from South Carolina, US, said: “He was more accepting of humanity than the other popes.

“I think he just cared about people because he came from the bottom.”

Patricia Wohlrab, 88, and Sue Ball, 77, local churchgoers from Westminster, said: “He was always advocating for the poor. I think that resonated with people from outside Catholicism and perhaps with people who were not religious at all.”

“I think that was one of his great strengths. If you think of the terrible situation in Gaza, he phoned the Catholic parish every single evening to see how they were doing”, Ms Wohlrab, who lived in Rome for 60 years and worked in the Vatican, added.