Thousands of people filed through the central aisle of St. Peter’s Basilica to pay their final respects to Pope Francis on Wednesday, the start of three days of public viewing ahead of the pontiff's funeral. Throngs of ordinary faithful made their way slowly to the 16th-century basilica's main altar, where Francis' simple open wooden casket was perched on a slight ramp, as four Swiss Guards stood at attention. Over the coming days, tens of thousands of people are expected to pass through the basilica, and the Vatican said that it may keep the basilica open past midnight due to high first-day turnout. MORE: https://www.wthr.com/article/news/nation-world/pope-funeral-public-viewings-begin/507-59b6ce9f-aec8-45f3-9448-e0796467612c