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Preparations are underway in St. Peter’s Square for the funeral of Pope Francis, scheduled for this Saturday. This solemn event will see numerous world leaders, religious officials, and mourners gathering to pay their final respects.
The funeral follows the passing of Pope Francis at 88 years old, just six days earlier, due to a stroke and heart failure. A significant turnout of tens of thousands of people lined up to pay tribute to the pontiff as he lay in state at St. Peter’s Basilica.
Following the funeral mass on Saturday morning, Pope Francis’ coffin will be transported to Rome and interred at the Basilica of St. Mary Major. This burial place marks a significant departure from tradition, as he is the first pope in over a century to be laid to rest outside of the Vatican.
Notably, Pope Francis had previously opted to simplify burial rites for future popes and directed that his own funeral be more modest.
Here’s everything you need to know about the ceremony and how to view it.
When and where is the funeral?
The funeral mass will commence at 10 a.m. local time (4 a.m. ET, 3 a.m. CT) and will take place in St. Peter’s Square, a grand plaza located in front of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.
After the mass, the pope’s body will be moved to St. Peter’s Basilica before being transported to the Basilica of St. Mary Major for burial.
Why is the burial in Rome?
Traditionally, popes are interred in the Vatican Grottoes located beneath St. Peter’s Basilica. However, Pope Francis selected St. Mary Major for his burial, situated about 2.5 miles away. This choice stems from his deep devotion to the basilica, where he prayed before and after his trips from Rome and during challenging times, including the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a 2024 interview, he shared, “I’ve always had a great devotion to St. Mary Major, even before I became pope.”
The last pope to be buried outside the Vatican was Leo XIII, who passed away in 1903.
How can I watch?
The funeral will be broadcast live on the Vatican News’s YouTube channel. The Vatican plans to provide live coverage of the mass and the procession to St. Mary Major, although it will cease coverage before the actual burial.
Additionally, various major broadcasters, including NBC and Peacock, CBS, and ABC News, will also provide live streaming of the event.
Stay informed by visiting NPR.org and its app for updates.
Who will be there?
The Vatican has announced that the mass will be presided over by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals, which is set to convene shortly to elect the next pope.
Joining him will be a global assembly of “Patriarchs, Cardinals, Archbishops, Bishops, priests, consecrated religious, and lay faithful.” The Italian government anticipates that around 200,000 attendees will participate, including over 100 international delegations, according to reports from NPR.
Among those confirmed to attend is President Trump, marking the commencement of his second term. Other prominent attendees are expected to include United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and leaders from various nations such as Argentina, Ukraine, Brazil, France, Ireland, Poland, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Notably, Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend due to an arrest warrant related to alleged war crimes in Ukraine, as indicated by Russian media reports.
What do we know about the proceedings?
Pope Francis’ coffin will be sealed during a ceremony on Friday night, concluding the public viewing period. On Saturday, the funeral will commence with a procession led by a priest carrying a cross, as reported by the New York Times. Once in the square, a book of the Gospels will be placed atop the coffin.
The service will follow traditional Catholic funeral rites, as explained by NPR religion correspondent Jason DeRose. While most of the service will be conducted in Latin, prayers will also be offered in other languages like Portuguese, Polish, Chinese, and Arabic, reflecting the church’s universal reach.
As noted by NBC News, the Swiss Guards, who have historically protected the pope and the Apostolic Palace, will kneel during the consecration of the host. A sermon will be delivered, reflecting on the pope’s life; however, it will not qualify as a formal eulogy.
In a gesture signifying his care for the marginalized, the Vatican has stated that a representative group of individuals in need will be present on the steps of St. Mary Major to pay their last respects before the coffin is finally interred.
How is Francis breaking with tradition?
The last papal funeral, that of Pope John Paul II in 2005, lasted three hours and gathered a remarkable assembly of dignitaries. On the other hand, the recent funeral for Pope Benedict XVI took place in January 2023, a decade post-resignation. However, the upcoming funeral for Pope Francis is set to be notably different.
After overseeing the funeral of his predecessor, Pope Francis collaborated with the Vatican’s liturgical master to streamline the funeral protocols for subsequent popes. He articulated in his 2024 autobiography that a pope should be given a dignified yet humble burial, emphasizing the role of the bishop of Rome as a shepherd rather than a powerful worldly figure.
A key modification includes dispensing with the traditional three-coffin burial method—cypress, lead, and oak—replacing it instead with a simple wooden coffin containing a zinc interior. While he lay in state, the coffin was oriented toward the pews rather than placed on a raised platform.
In his will, Pope Francis expressed the desire for a simple tomb set in the ground, devoid of elaborate decoration, with merely the inscription “Franciscus,” the Latin version of Francis. The Vatican has indicated that his tomb will feature marble sourced from the Liguria region of Italy, the ancestral home of his grandparents.
What happens next?
The Vatican has announced that individuals can begin visiting Pope Francis’s tomb starting Sunday, the day following the funeral.
The funeral service initiates a nine-day mourning period known as Novemdiales, featuring special masses each day.
Following this, the cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church will convene to elect a new pope. This conclave must begin between 15 and 20 days after the pope’s death, potentially commencing between May 6 and May 11.
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