Empire State Building shines in gold, white in memory of Pope Francis after pontiff's death

The Empire State Building in New York is shining gold and white tower lights for a four-hour window Monday night and into Tuesday morning in memory of Pope Francis following his death The building was shining starting at p m Monday night and will stay lit until a m Tuesday to honor the life and legacy of the pontiff according to the Empire State Building website A defining feature of the New York City skyline since the Empire State Building lights have captured the world s imagination for decades the building's website reads We maintain a tradition of changing the color of the lights to recognize essential occasions holidays and organizations throughout the year VANCE WAS ONE OF POPE FRANCIS' LAST VISITORS Since the building has used a state-of-the-art LED lighting system capable of displaying more than million colors the website adds Francis died Monday morning at the age of ending his -year papacy as the th pope and spiritual leader of the Roman Catholic Church At this morning the Bishop of Rome Francis returned to the house of the Father His entire life was dedicated to the amenity of the Lord and His Church Cardinal Kevin Ferrell the Vatican camerlengo released Monday morning He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity courage and universal love especially in favor of the poorest and bulk marginalized Ferrell continued With immense gratitude for his example as a true disciple of the Lord Jesus we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the infinite merciful love of the One and Triune God Political and religious leaders around the world mourned after learning of Francis' death Rest in Peace Pope Francis May God Bless him and all who loved him U S President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social TRUMP WORLD LEADERS REACT TO DEATH OF POPE FRANCISFrancis who suffered from chronic lung malady and had part of one lung removed when he was younger spent days in Rome's Gemelli hospital starting on Feb to treat a respiratory predicament that developed into double pneumonia The pope was still recovering when he met with U S Vice President JD Vance on Easter Sunday at the Casa Santa Marta