VATICAN CITY -- As many as 50,000 pilgrims, faithful and heads of state attended the solemn funeral of Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI Thursday celebrated by Pope Francis in a misty St. Peter's Square.  Despite the elaborate liturgy and solenmity of the occasion, the end of the service was marred when some mourners shouted "Santo subito" and chanted "Benedetto" repeatedly in what was seen by Vatican observers as an undignified way to end a funeral mass, underlining ongoing tension between rival supporters of Pope Francis and the German Emeritus pope.

 

 

 The square was full by early morning after pilgrims, many of them from Germany, began arriving at dawn. German flags fluttered in the throng and some mourners carried banners saying "Danke Benedikt."

  

  In his homily, the pontiff said "Here we see the awareness of a pastor who cannot carry alone what in truth he could never carry alone, and can thus commend himself to the prayers and the care of the people entrusted to him."

 

  "God’s faithful people, gathered here, now accompanies and entrusts to him the life of the one who was their pastor. Like the women at the tomb, we too have come with the fragrance of gratitude and the balm of hope, in order to show him once more the love that is undying," Francis said.

 

 "We want to do this with the same wisdom, tenderness and devotion that he bestowed upon us over the years.  Together, we want to say: 'Father, into your hands we commend his spirit.' 

  

  Despite the elaborate liturgy and planning, the funeral Mass ended in some confusion as some mourners shouted "Santo subito," in Italian, calling for Benedict to be made a saint immediately, while others chanted "Benedetto," repeatedly, a gesture seen by Vatican watc hers as rather an undignified way to end a funeral that could also be construed as opposition to Pope Francis and nostalgia for the reign of his predecessor. 

 

  The mourners only were able to reach the square on foot as surrounding streets were closed to traffic and there was a heavy Italian police presence.

 

  Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni declared a day of national mourning in Italy for the funeral of Benedict, meaning that Italian flags were lowered to half mast. In the Vatican however offices remained open for normal administration since a day of mourning is only declared in the tiny city state for the death of a reigning pontiff.

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