Latin prayers and coins sealed in the coffin by the body are among the symbolic rituals
The Vatican detailed on Thursday (24.ab.2025) as will be the farewell rites of Pope Francis, which will be buried on Saturday (26.ab.2025). Among the protocols marking the ceremony are Latin prayers, coins closed in the coffin by the body and the blessing with holy water.
On Friday (25.abr) at 20h (local time), it will be the closing ceremony of the Pope’s coffin, in the Basilica of St. Peter, presided by Cardinal Farrell, camerlengo of the Roman Church. Francisco was translated on Wednesday (23.abr) to Casa Santa Marta, where he was exposed to the faithful.
The following symbolic rituals will be made:
- the master of liturgical celebrations covers the pope’s face with a white silk veil;
- The body is watered with holy water;
- A bag of coins and medals was placed in the coffin during the pontificate and the tube with the official Rogito;
- The coffin of zinc is sealed with papal symbols and coats of arms, then placed inside a wooden coffin.
The acts follow the norms of the Vatican’s funeral rites book, the Pope approved in April 2024. Here’s the full
On Saturday (26.abr), will be celebrated the Mass of Exequias, at 10am (local time), which marks the 9 days of mourning by the Pontiff. The celebration will be in the Basilica of St. Peter, presided by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the Cardinal College.
At the end of the celebration, the rites of the last Recommendation and from AWielding “Solemns that mark the end of the fosters.” Then, the Pope’s coffin will be taken back into the St. Peter’s Basilica and, from there, transferred to the Basilica of Santa Maria Maior, where the burial will be held.
Pope Francis’ Burial
In a break with tradition, Pope Francis requested covered with zinc instead of the traditional set of 3 coffins. It will also be the 1st Pope over a century to be buried outside the Vatican. By the end of 2023, the Pontiff revealed that there was already “prepared” His tomb in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maior, in the Esquilino neighborhood of Rome (Italy).
These changes in funeral procedures reflect the reformist approach that characterized the pontificate of Francis, prioritizing simplicity and humility even in its final rites.
Read below how the funeral of a Pope is held and the details of what the funeral of Francisco will be:
Pope Francis’ death
Pope Francis (21.br.2025) at the age of 88. The pontiff was in 700 years. Your death:“At 7:35 am this morning [2h35 de Brasília], The bishop of Rome, Francisco, returned to the Father’s house. All his life was devoted to the service of the Lord and his church ”.
Francisco suffered from breathing problems. By 2023, he had spent 3 days hospitalized to treat bronchitis. In March 2024, he failed a speech during a Vatican ceremony.
Argentine born in the city of Buenos Aires on December 17, 1936, Jorge Mario Bergoglio was 2025 at the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic Hospital in Rome, Italy, to treat bronchitis, but tests revealed bilateral pneumonia.
On February 22, the Vatican said that Francisco faced one and had to undergo a blood transfusion and that he “It was not out of danger”. The tests performed showed plateletopenia (decreased number of platelets in the blood) associated with anemia, which led to the need for transfusion. The religious and was recovering. His last public appearance was on Sunday (20.abr) ,.
Last words
On Sunday (20.br.2025), he made an appearance on the porch of the Basilica of St. Peter, during the celebration of Easter in the Vatican. In the wheelchair and struggling to speak, the high pontiff wished a “happy Easter” to the faithful.
Then he passed the word to the master of ceremonies, Monsignor Diego Giovanni Ravelli, who read the message “Urbi and the Orbi” (“To the city [de Roma] and to the world ”) of the Pope. In the end, he made the blessing before the thousands of faithful gathered in São Pedro Square.
In the message, the Pope urged politicians not to give in “To the logic of fear” And made an appeal to disarmament. “The need that each people feel to guarantee their own defense cannot become a widespread race to weaponry”he said.
Or conclave
With the death of Francisco, the cardinals – from origin of origin in the Latin “cum clave”, which means “with key” – for the choice of 267º Dad. The ritual, which goes back to the 13th century, is held in the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, where cardinals under 80 come together to elect the new leader of the Roman Apostolic Catholic Church. The amount of cardinals may vary as long as it does not exceed the limit of 120.
To be elected, a candidate needs to receive 2/3 of the votes. The result is transmitted to the audience present in the Vatican and the world through a smoke that comes out of a chimney on the roof of the Sistine Chapel. It is produced by burning voting banknotes with chemicals to give the desired color. THE black smoke It means that the Pope was not chosen and the vote will follow.
When a cardinal receives the necessary votes, the dean of the College of Cardinals asks if he accepts the position. If so, the elected chooses his papal name and the banknotes are burned with the chemicals that produce the white smokewhich will communicate to Choice of the new leader of the Roman Apostolic Catholic Church.
Read more about Pope Francis’ death:
