Vatican City – The Vatican has announced that the remains of the late Pope Francis will be transferred to St. Peter’s Basilica on April 23rd, where they will lie in state until his funeral on Saturday morning.
The Vatican has also released images showing Pope Francis in an open casket, dressed in a crimson robe, holding a rosary, and wearing the papal mitre. These photos were taken at the chapel of his residence, Casa Santa Marta.
Pope Francis’s funeral Mass is scheduled for Saturday, April 26th, at 10:00 AM in St. Peter’s Square, the open space in front of St. Peter’s Basilica, as confirmed by the Holy See Press Office. Cardinals convened earlier today to finalize the funeral arrangements.
The funeral liturgy will be presided over by Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals. Following the funeral, Cardinal Re will offer the final commendation, a closing prayer in which the Pope is solemnly entrusted to God. The body will then be transported to the Basilica of St. Mary Major for burial.
The Vatican has stated that the casket containing the Pope’s remains will be moved from the Casa Santa Marta chapel to St. Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday, allowing the faithful to pay their respects.
Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, will oversee the transfer ceremony on April 23rd, which will begin with a prayer at 9:00 AM. The procession will proceed through the Square of the Roman Protomartyrs and Santa Marta Square before entering St. Peter’s Square via the Arch of the Bells. The public viewing of the Pope’s body will commence after the Liturgy of the Word, which will be presided over by Cardinal Camerlengo at the Altar of the Confession.
The funeral is expected to be attended by numerous world leaders. U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Monday that he and First Lady Melania Trump will travel to the Vatican to attend the Pope’s funeral. “Melania and I will be going to the funeral of Pope Francis, in Rome,” Trump stated on his Truth Social account. “We look forward to being there! He’s a very good man who loved the world. And he had a special love for those who were struggling. And I’m okay with that.”
The official medical report on Pope Francis’s death, verified by electrocardiographic thanatography, was released on Monday evening by Dr. Andrea Arcangeli, Director of the Directorate of Health and Hygiene of the Vatican City State. The report indicated that the 88-year-old Pope had a history of severe respiratory failure caused by multiple bronchiectases, hypertension, Type II diabetes, and multimicrobial bilateral pneumonia.
The certification of death and the placing of the body in the coffin ceremony took place on Monday night at 8:00 PM in the ground floor chapel of Casa Santa Marta.
In accordance with his wishes, Pope Francis will be buried in the crypt of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome, marking the first time in over a century that a Pope will be buried outside the Vatican. He also requested to be buried in a plain wooden casket, deviating from the traditional three nested coffins of cypress, lead, and oak used for past Popes.
Meanwhile, mourners from around the world continue to gather in St. Peter’s Square to pay their final respects.
