Although Pope Francis simplified the papal funeral rites in a move of typical modesty, Saturday\u2019s ceremony will still be full of pomp and pageantry, as the world\u2019s Catholics bid him farewell and cardinals in the Vatican ready themselves for the millennia-old process of picking a new pontiff. <\/p>\n
Here\u2019s what we know about the funeral of Pope Francis, who died of a heart attack and stroke on Easter Monday. <\/p>\n
After a period of rest in the chapel of Casa Santa Marta, the Vatican guesthouse where Francis lived during his papacy, his body will on Wednesday morning be moved to St. Peter\u2019s Basilica. There, he will lie in state in an open coffin for three days, while cardinals and the wider public pay their respects to the late pontiff. <\/p>\n
Francis\u2019 coffin will then be carried into St. Peter\u2019s Square \u2013 the piazza outside the basilica \u2013 for Saturday\u2019s funeral. <\/p>\n
Francis\u2019 funeral will begin at 10 a.m. local time (4 a.m. ET) Saturday \u2013 six days after his death. The last papal funeral \u2013 for Pope Benedict XVI in 2023 \u2013 was also held six days after his death. <\/p>\n
The Vatican announced that Francis\u2019 funeral will be held outside in St. Peter\u2019s Square. Previous papal funerals have also been held outside, with thousands of mourners filling the open space in front of the basilica. <\/p>\n
Francis\u2019 funeral liturgy will be presided over by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals \u2013 the group which will in the coming weeks be tasked with appointing a new pope. <\/p>\n
The Vatican said the funeral will follow the rites laid out in the \u201cOrdo Exsequiarum Romani Pontificis.\u201d This liturgical book, detailing the procedures for papal funerals, was published in 2000 but revised by Francis last year. <\/p>\n
Diego Ravelli, master of apostolic ceremonies, said Francis had sought to \u201csimplify and adapt\u201d the ceremony, so that the papal funeral is \u201cthat of a pastor and disciple of Christ, and not of a powerful person in this world.\u201d <\/p>\n
A string of world leaders have confirmed they will travel to the Vatican for Saturday\u2019s service. Javier Milei, the president of Francis\u2019 native Argentina who had previously clashed with the pontiff over economic policy, will attend. Luiz In\u00e1cio Lula da Silva, president of neighboring Brazil who had a close relationship with Francis, is also going. <\/p>\n
French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, outgoing German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky are among the major European leaders traveling to the Vatican. <\/p>\n
US President Donald Trump will also attend. <\/p>\n
Tens of thousands of others are expected to show up. About 50,000 people came to Benedict\u2019s funeral in 2023, while around 300,000 attended John Paul\u2019s in 2005. <\/p>\n
Russian President Vladimir Putin has \u201cno plans\u201d to attend, the Kremlin said Tuesday. <\/p>\n
Because the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant for Putin, police in Italy \u2013 one of the 125 ICC member states \u2013 would be obliged to detain him. <\/p>\n
In his will, Francis gave simple instructions for his burial: \u201cThe tomb should be in the ground; simple, without particular ornamentation, bearing only the inscription: Franciscus.\u201d <\/p>\n
Francis also said that throughout his life, he had always entrusted himself to the Virgin Mary. \u201cFor this reason, I ask that my mortal remains rest \u2013 awaiting the day of the Resurrection \u2013 in the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major,\u201d he wrote. <\/p>\n
This basilica lies outside of the Vatican walls, on the other side of Rome\u2019s River Tiber. After the funeral in the Vatican, Francis\u2019 body will be transported there to be interred. <\/p>\n
The process of choosing a new pope, known as conclave, is a combination of ancient tradition, religious ritual and politics. The voting takes place behind closed doors. Only cardinals under the age of 80 \u2013 slightly over half the total number \u2013 have a say in the decision. <\/p>\n
Once the cardinals are assembled in Rome, usually around 15 days after the pope\u2019s death, they meet in the Sistine Chapel to begin the decision-making process. <\/p>\n
It typically takes between two and three weeks for a pope to be chosen, though it can stretch slightly beyond that if cardinals struggle to agree on a candidate. <\/p>\n
Of the 135 cardinals eligible to appoint the next pontiff, Pope Francis installed 108. <\/p>\n
That means four out of five votes in conclave will be cast by cardinals elevated by Francis, which has led some analysts to suspect they will appoint a successor who will continue to follow his pastoral priorities. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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