The body of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI is on display in St. Peter's Basilica, and thousands of worshipers lined up hours before dawn today to pass by and pay their respects.
The doors of the church were opened this morning to allow worshippers, some of whom waited for hours in wet pre-dawn weather, to pay their respects to the late pope who shocked the world when he stepped down in 2013, becoming the first pope to do so in 600 years .
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI died on Saturday morning at the age of 96 in the monastery in the Vatican where he had lived since his retirement in 2013.
The body of the late Pope Benedict XVI will be on display for the next three days before the funeral on Thursday, which will be led by Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square.
Security officials expect at least 25.000 people to pass by Pope Benedict's body on the first day today.
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