Body of Pope Francis lies in state
Pope Francis will be buried on Saturday, the Vatican has announced.
Francis died from stroke and heart failure on Easter Monday, the Vatican said, after battling a protracted illness.
The burial of a pope typically occurs between the fourth and sixth day after death, according to norms first established in 1966 and reaffirmed in later ritual updates. This time frame allows for several essential rites and traditions.
On Tuesday, the Holy See press office said Francis’ body will be transferred to St. Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday to lie in state until his funeral on Saturday morning.
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Cardinal Giovanni Battista, dean of the College of Cardinals, will preside at the funeral mass, which will be co-celebrated by patriarchs, cardinals, archbishops, bishops, and priests from across the globe, the statement added.
In his final wishes, Francis asked to be buried without elaborate decoration, marked only by the inscription: Franciscus.
The pope stated that an anonymous benefactor would cover the costs of his funeral.
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His will was written in 2022.
The last pope to die in office before Francis was Pope John Paul II, who passed on April 2, 2005.
Pope Benedict XVI, who succeeded him, resigned in 2013 — the first pope to resign since 1294.
Benedict XVI passed away on December 31, 2022, at the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican at the age of 95.
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Francis, his successor, died at 88.
He was the first Latin American and the first Jesuit to be ordained pope. He was also the first to take the name Francis in honour of Saint Francis of Assisi.
