Pope Francis He is dead. “At 7.35 in the morning the bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to his father's house,” said the Vatican.
Confirmation of the Pope's death is, according to tradition, the task of Camerling (a higher -ranking Vatican official). Currently, this function is performed by Cardinal Kevin Farrell, born in Ireland. “Politico” writes about what happens when the Pope dies.
The rest of the article under video material:
After the Pope's death in the Vatican, the machine moves. They destroy the signeton first
Camerling visits the pope's body in his private chapel and calls his name “to wake him up”. Currently, this is mainly ceremonial, because death is confirmed by doctors. A often repeated myth says that Camerling gently knocks the pope with a silver hammer in the head, but the Vatican has long denied.
According to the tradition, papal signette, which acts as a seal on official documents, is destroyed, which means the end of the reign, and the papal apartments are closed.
See also: Pope Francis is dead
The pope's body is exhibited in the Basilica of St. Piotr
Camerling informs the Cardinal College, a managing body composed of senior church officials that the Pope died before his death was announced to the world in a Vatican statement addressed to the media.
The body is blessed, dressed in papal robes and staged in the Basilica of St. Piotr at the public, where hundreds of thousands of people, including foreign dignitaries and world leaders, will queue to pay homage. In the past, the pope's corpses were exhibited on an elevated platform called catafalko.
See also: Who chooses the pope? They decide
Hearts as relics
In the past, popes were often balm, and some of them were removed from burial – in the church near the Trevi fountain in Rome, the hearts of over 20 popes in marble urns are stored, preserved as holy relics – but these practices fell out of favor.
The Vatican enters a temporary period, during which power over the church is temporarily transferred to the cardinal college – although no relevant decisions will be made until the election of a new pope will be made.
Pope's funeral. Franciszek wants to be buried outside the Vatican
The funeral of the Pope takes place in Saint Peter's Square from four to six days after his death. The ceremony is led by the dean of the Cardinal College; Currently, it is 91-year-old Italian Giovanni Battista Re.
Traditionally, the Pope is buried in the Vatican Grotts, crypts at the Basilica of Saint Peter. Almost 100 popes were buried in it, including Pope Benedict XVI, predecessor Francis, who resigned in 2013 and died in 2022.
However, Franciszek said in an interview in 2023 that he chose the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, one of his favorite and most visited churches as his final rest, which makes him the first Pope in the century buried outside the Vatican.
Burial of the pope. One casket instead of three
Previous popes were buried in three coffins: one of the cypress, one of the zinc and one of the elms, placed one in the other, but Francis ordered him to bury him in one casket, made of wood and zinc.
When Benedict XVI was buried, there were three coins in his coffin during his reign, as well as a scroll of paper – a document consisting of 1000 words describing his life and reign.
Source: Politico
