Catholic cardinals made their first decisions on Tuesday following the death of Pope Francis, scheduling his funeral for Saturday and indicating that the faithful could pay their last respects starting Wednesday, when his coffin will be taken to St. Peter’s Basilica.
They gathered in the Vatican synod hall to plan the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Pope Francis’ successor. According to current rules, the conclave must begin between May 5 and May 10.
When will Pope Francis’s funeral be?
The funeral was scheduled for Saturday at 10 in the morning in St. Peter’s Square, officiated by the dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re.
The President of the United States, Donald Trump, has announced that he and the First Lady, Melania Trump, plan to attend the Saturday funeral. The Argentine president, Javier Milei, is also expected to attend.
Francisco passed away on Monday at the age of 88 after suffering a stroke that left him in a coma and led to heart failure. He was recovering in his apartment after being hospitalized for five weeks due to pneumonia. He made his last public appearance on Sunday, when he offered an Easter blessing and gave his final farewell to the parishioners from his popemobile, driving around St. Peter’s Square.
In retrospect, his Easter appearance from the same lodge where he was introduced to the world as the first pope of America on March 13, 2013, was a perfect conclusion for a 12-year papacy that sought to shake up the Church and return it to its evangelical mission of caring for the poorest.
Where will Pope Francis be buried?
In his final will, Francis confirmed that he would be buried in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, which is located outside the Vatican and houses his favorite image of the Virgin Mary. After each trip abroad, Francis would go to the basilica to pray before the Byzantine-style painting that depicts an image of Mary, dressed in a blue cloak and holding the baby Jesus in her arms, who in turn holds a golden book adorned with jewels.
Francisco stopped at the basilica on his way home from Gemelli Hospital on March 23, after his 38-day hospital stay, to deliver flowers that were placed before the icon. He returned on April 12 to pray before the Madonna one last time.
It is common for popes to be buried in the grottoes beneath St. Peter’s Basilica, but Francis had different wishes.
"He wanted to be buried under the shadow of a woman, in this case Mary, said Ravasi, former Vatican culture minister, upon arriving at the first meeting of cardinals on Tuesday. “That is significant, his desire for the Church to do more for women.”