- Last year, Pope Francis revised the rites and funeral protocol for Roman Catholic pontiffs.
- The rites and rituals include death certification, public viewing and the sealing of the coffin.
- The funeral plans for Pope Francis have not been released, but it will happen between four and six days after his death.
Pope Francis died early Monday morning at age 88; following the death of a pope, there are a series of rites and rituals that are performed leading up to the funeral services and interment.
In a statement on Monday, the Vatican listed Pope Francis’ cause of death as stroke, followed by a coma and “irreversible cardiocirculatory collapse,” per The New York Times.
On Tuesday the Vatican announced that Pope Francis’ funeral will take place on Saturday in front of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. The funeral will “feature simpler rituals in keeping with the more down-to-earth, informal style that became a trademark of Francis’ papacy,” per The New York Times.
The dean of the College of Cardinals, Giovani Battista Re, will preside over the ceremony.
On Monday, hundreds of people gathered for a rosary in St. Peter’s Square to pray for Pope Francis.
The rites and rituals following the pope’s death will take place over several days, but will look different than they have in the past, since Pope Francis revised some of the rites last year. He simplified the funeral rites and allowed for some more flexibility.
Here is a look at why Pope Francis changed some of the rites, as well as what the next few days will look like leading up to his funeral and burial.
Why were changes made?
Pope Francis had the “Rite of Burial for Roman Pontiffs” revised and simplified, approving the changes in 2024, per Axios. The changes were made after Pope Francis expressed his wishes for his funeral following the death of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.
According to The Associated Press, it is common for popes to alter the rules dictating the conclave that will elect their successor, but the papal funeral rites had not been revised since 2000.
Pope Francis had worked with Archbishop Diego Ravelli to make changes to the rites.
Archbishop Ravelli said, “The renewed rite seeks to emphasize even more that the funeral of the Roman Pontiff is that of a pastor and disciple of Christ and not of a powerful person of this world,” per Axios.
The certification of death
The first step in the rites and rituals following a papal death is the certification of death. On Monday evening, the director of the Vatican’s health department will be summoned to certify Pope Francis’ death. Due to the changes made, this formal confirmation will take place in Pope Francis’ personal chapel instead of in his bedroom.
After the cause of death is determined and the report is written, Pope Francis’s papal ring will be removed from his finger by the camerlengo, who runs the Vatican after the pope’s death until a successor is elected, according to The New York Times.
The ring is known as the fisherman’s ring; it depicts St. Peter fishing from a boat, and is traditionally used to seal Vatican documents. It has the pope’s name on it and is destroyed after his death. A new one will be forged for the next pope.
In the past, the body would be placed in three coffins made of cypress, lead and oak. But with the new revisions the pope’s body is placed in a wooden coffin lined with zinc. The pope is dressed in red liturgical vestments, the traditional headdress of bishops and the pallium woolen stole.
The public viewing and sealing of the coffin
On Wednesday, Pope Francis’ body will be taken to St. Peter’s Basilica to lie in state for three days, per The New York Times. The public is allowed to visit and pay tribute.
The Litany of Saints chant is sung when the body is brought into the basilica, with the camerlengo leading the procession.
Due to another change the pope’s body will no longer be placed on an elevated platform; instead, the wooden coffin will be placed facing the pews. The large, decorated Pasqual candle, which is used at Easter, will be placed nearby.
The camerlengo will preside over the closing and sealing of the coffin on the night before the funeral, and other senior cardinals will be present. A white cloth will be placed over the pope’s face, per the AP.
A one-page written account of Pope Francis’s papacy will be placed in the coffin, known as a “rogito” in Italian, along with a bag of coins minted during his papacy.
The rogito will be read aloud by the master of liturgical ceremonies, and will then be rolled up and put inside a cylindrical tube that is placed inside the coffin. A second copy will be kept in the Vatican archives.
The cover of the coffin bears a cross and the papal coat of arms, per the AP.
The funeral and burial
The funeral and interment have to take place four to six days after the pope’s death, per Axios. The service traditionally happens in St. Peter’s Square, weather permitting.
The dean of the College of Cardinals traditionally presides over the funeral, but if that is not possible, it is done by the vice dean or another senior cardinal.
Pope Francis’ revisions also allow the pope to be buried outside the Vatican, with the camerlengo presiding. For the burial, various seals will be impressed on the coffin before it is place inside the tomb, per the AP.
The late pope’s wishes were to be buried in the St. Mary Major Basilica, not in St. Peter’s Basilica or its grottoes, where most popes are buried.
“The tomb must be in the earth; simple, without particular decoration and with the only inscription: Franciscus,” he wrote in his will, per The New York Times.
A nine-day period of official mourning will begin with the burial. The conclave will also start after Pope Francis’ burial, per ABC.