Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who chose the name by which he wanted to be known in a tribute to St. Francis of Assisi, the saint of the poor, It has eliminated, for example, the obligation for the popes to be buried in the traditional three coffins, of cypress, lead and oak, opting for only one coffin.
The Pope’s funeral will be different from that of the previous pontiffs, as Francis approved changes and the simplification of the ritual of exhecules to highlight his status of faithful Christian in the head of the head of the Catholic Church.
Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who chose the name by which he wanted to be known in a tribute to St. Francis of Assisi, the saint of the poor, It has eliminated, for example, the obligation for the popes to be buried in the traditional three coffins, of cypress, lead and oak, opting for only one coffin.
According to a standard established in 1996 by John Paul II, papal funerals should take place between the fourth and sixth days after death, having their occurred six days later.
Regarding the rite, Francis approved in 2024 a second edition of the “Ordo Exequerum Romani Pontificis”, the book liturgical approved in 1998 by John Paul II and published in 2000.
Archbishop Diego Ravelli, master of liturgical celebrations, explained in November 2024, when the Pope received the first copy of the printed book, which Francis “He asked to simplify and adapt some rites so that the celebration of the fostering of the bishop of Rome would better express the faith of the Risen Church in Christ.”
“In addition, the renewed rite should underline even more than the funeral of the Roman Pontiff is that of a pastor and disciple of Christ and not that of a powerful man of this world,” he added in statements to the Vatican news portal.
Celebrations maintain the three classic steps
According to the new rules, Celebrations maintain the three classic steps – The residence of the deceased Pope, the Basilica of St. Peter and the place of the grave – but the verification of death happens in the private chapel of the deceased, instead of the room, and the body must be deposited in a wooden coffin with zinc interior before being transferred to the basilica.
In this place, where the wake, The body should be exposed directly in the coffin, and then, as Francisco chose, buried in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maior, in Rome, and not in the Crypt of the Basilica of St. Peter, where most popes are buried.
Benedict XVI and its predecessor John Paul II were buried in the Vatican caves, with the fostering of the first in general the model of a high pontiff, although no longer occupying the position and the figure of Pope Emeritus no longer regulated.
Funeral ceremonies of John Paul II began on April 2, 2005
The funeral ceremonies of John Paul II began on the day he died, on April 2, 2005, with the intonation of the psalm known as “Deep” (depths) shortly after the announcement of his death and before the bells began to touch the churches of Rome.
The body was in a burning chamber in the Basilica of St. Peter, open to the public, from two days after death until the eve of the funeral, on April 08, date decided by the College of Cardinals.
The funeral mass, celebrated in the Basilica Adro, lasted two and a half hours and the coffin was transported to the crypt where he was placed in a second coffin and a third before being buried under a tombstone with the dates of birth and death of John Paul II and the name inscribed in Latin.
They watched the funeral close to one million people, including about two hundred leaders from around the world, including the then president of the Portuguese Republic Jorge Sampaio, sitting in a tribune of honor placed in the Basilica Adro, while around the world millions accompanied television ceremonies in giant scraps placed in squares, streets and churches.
