Papal inauguration of Pope Francis
The Papal inauguration of Pope Francis was held on 19 March 2013 in St. Peter's Square in the Vatican. Holy Mass was celebrated by Pope Francis before political and religious leaders from around the world. The crowd was estimated between 150,000 and 200,000. Official delegations from 132 states and various religious groups attended. It was the first papal inauguration attended by the Patriarch of Constantinople in over 1,000 years.
Ceremony
About half an hour before the Mass, Francis toured the square in the popemobile to greet the crowds. He stopped and left the popemobile once to kiss a disabled man.Pope Francis wore a simple mitre, which he has had since he was bishop, as well as its matching chasuble. He used the pastoral staff that Benedict XVI used, but in contrast to Benedict XVI's grand liturgical sense, Pope Francis kept the songs and liturgical actions simple. According to Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Pope Francis's lack of singing during Mass is attributed to him having only one lung.
After the Pope's arrival, the ceremony began with the new Pope descending to the tomb of St. Peter in St. Peter's Basilica. The pope, along with the Patriarchs and Major-Archbishops of the Eastern Catholic Churches prayed at the tomb. Afterwards, the pallium—a lamb's wool shawl—and the Ring of the Fisherman were taken by two deacons from the tomb where they had previously been laid and carried up to be borne in procession. Then the pope and the Eastern Catholic Patriarchs and Major-Archbishops went up to the Basilica main floor and proceeded along with the other cardinals, bishops and other clergy in procession to the square chanting the "Laudes Regiæ".
The cardinal protodeacon, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, bestowed the pallium on the Pope. The senior cardinal-priest present Godfried Danneels read the prayer for the new pope before the Ring of the Fisherman was presented. Angelo Sodano, Dean of the College of Cardinals, presented him with his Fisherman's Ring of gold-plated silver unlike his predecessors' which were gold. Six cardinals, two of each rank of cardinal, then professed their obedience to Pope Francis on behalf of the College of Cardinals. In previous ceremonies, all the cardinals did so.
According to a Vatican spokesperson between 150,000 and 200,000 people attended.
Homily
Pope Francis delivered his homily in Italian. He focused on the Solemnity of Saint Joseph, the liturgical day on which the Mass was celebrated. He stated that everyone needs to care for the earth and for each other as Joseph cared for Jesus and Mary. He set forth a plan of his own actions: "The pope, too, when exercising power, must enter ever more fully into that service, which has its radiant culmination on the cross."Official delegations
Some 132 states and international organizations sent delegations to the inauguration. The delegations included 6 sovereign rulers, 31 heads of state, 3 princes, and 11 heads of government.States
| Country | Flag | Official delegation |
| Andorra | Co-Prince Joan Enric Vives Sicília, Bishop of Urgell | |
| Albania | Prime Minister Sali Berisha | |
| Angola | Vice President Manuel Domingos Vicente | |
| Armenia | President Serzh Sargsyan | |
| Argentina | President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner | |
| Austria | President Heinz Fischer and his wife, Margit Fischer Chancellor Werner Faymann Vice Chancellor Michael Spindelegger | |
| Bahrain | Prince Abdullah bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa | |
| Bangladesh | Foreign Minister Dipu Moni | |
| Belarus | Anatoly Rubinov, Chairman of the Council of the Republic Sergey Aleinik, Ambassador to the Holy See | |
| Belgium | King Albert II and Queen Paola Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo | |
| Bosnia-Herzegovina | Prime Minister Vjekoslav Bevanda Zlatko Lagumdžija, Minister of Foreign Affairs Sredoje Nović, Minister of Civil Affairs Eugen Šušak, Head of the Cabinet of the Prime Minister | |
| Brazil | President Dilma Rousseff | |
| Bulgaria | President Rosen Plevneliev | |
| Canada | Governor General David Johnston and his wife Sharon Johnston Jason Kenney, Minister for Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism | |
| Chile | President Sebastian Piñera and First Lady Cecilia Morel | |
| China, Republic of | President Ma Ying-jeou and First Lady Christine Chow Mei-ching Vanessa Shih, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| Colombia | María Ángela Holguín, Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| Costa Rica | President Laura Chinchilla | |
| Croatia | President Ivo Josipović and First Lady Tatjana Josipović Vesna Pusić, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs | |
| Cuba | First Vice President Miguel Díaz-Canel | |
| Cyprus | Andreas Mavroyiannis, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs | |
| Czech Republic | Karel Schwarzenberg, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| Dominican Republic | Cándida Montilla de Medina, First Lady | |
| Ecuador | President Rafael Correa | |
| Egypt | Mohamed Saber Ibrahim Arab, Minister of Culture | |
| El Salvador | Hugo Martínez, Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| France | Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault Laurent Fabius, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs | |
| Germany | Norbert Lammert, President of the Bundestag Winfried Kretschmann, President of the Bundesrat Chancellor Angela Merkel Vice Chancellor Philipp Rösler | |
| Honduras | President Porfirio Lobo Sosa | |
| Hungary | President János Áder and First Lady Anita Herczegh Zsolt Semjén, Deputy Prime Minister György Hölvényi, State Secretary for religious, ethnic and civil society | |
| Italy | President Giorgio Napolitano and First Lady Clio Maria Bittoni Prime Minister Mario Monti Pietro Grasso, President of the Senate Laura Boldrini, President of the Chamber of Deputies | |
| India | P. J. Kurien, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman | |
| Ireland | President Michael D. Higgins and First Lady Sabina Coyne. Michael Noonan, Minister for Finance | |
| Japan | Yoshiro Mori, former Prime Minister | |
| Kosovo | Hashim Thaçi, Prime Minister | |
| Lebanon | Prime Minister Nagib Miqati | |
| Liechtenstein | Hereditary Prince Alois and his wife Hereditary Princess Sophie | |
| Lithuania | President Dalia Grybauskaitė | |
| Luxembourg | Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa | |
| Malta | President George Abela Prime Minister Joseph Muscat Lawrence Gonzi, Leader of the Opposition | |
| Mexico | President Enrique Peña Nieto and First Lady Angélica Rivera | |
| Monaco | Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene | |
| Netherlands | Prince Willem-Alexander, The Prince of Orange and his wife, Princess Máxima Prime Minister Mark Rutte | |
| New Zealand | Chris Finlayson, Cabinet minister | |
| Nicaragua | Vice President Omar Halleslevens | |
| Nigeria | David Mark, President of the Senate Stella Oduah-Ogiemwonyi, Minister of Aviation Viola Onwuliri, Minister of State | |
| Paraguay | President Federico Franco | |
| Peru | Rafael Roncagliolo, Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| Philippines | Vice President Jejomar Binay | |
| Poland | President Bronisław Komorowski and First Lady Anna Komorowska Bogdan Borusewicz, Speaker of the Senate Lech Wałęsa, former President Jacek Cichocki, Director of the Prime Minister's Office | |
| Portugal | President Aníbal Cavaco Silva | |
| Romania | President Traian Băsescu | |
| Russia | Sergey Naryshkin, Chairman of the State Duma | |
| San Marino | Pasquale Valentini, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Politics | |
| Serbia | President Tomislav Nikolić Ivan Mrkić, Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| Seychelles | Jean-Paul Adam, Minister for Foreign Affairs | |
| Singapore | Grace Fu, Minister in Prime Minister's Office | |
| Slovakia | President Ivan Gašparovič | |
| Slovenia | President Borut Pahor | |
| South Korea | Yoo Jin-ryong, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism | |
| Spain | Infante Felipe, The Prince of Asturias and his wife, The Princess of Asturias Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy | |
| Sri Lanka | Neomal Perera, Deputy Minister of External Affairs Sarath Kumara Gunaratna, Deputy Minister of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources John Amaratunga, Member of Parliament | |
| Switzerland | Didier Burkhalter Federal Councillor | |
| Ukraine | Kostyantyn Hryshchenko, Deputy Prime Minister | |
| United Kingdom | Prince Richard, The Duke of Gloucester and his wife, Birgitte, The Duchess of Gloucester Baroness Warsi, Senior Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and Minister for Faith and Communities Kenneth Clarke, Minister without Portfolio | |
| United States | Vice President Joe Biden and his sister, Valerie Biden Owens Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader in the House of Representatives Susana Martinez, Governor of New Mexico | |
| Venezuela | Diosdado Cabello, President of National Assembly | |
| Zimbabwe | President Robert Mugabe and First Lady Grace Mugabe |
Taiwan's representation was opposed by China, which has asked the Vatican to end the diplomatic relations with the state.