Members of the faithful can pay their respects to the late pontiff from Wednesday, as his remains will be lying in state in the Vatican.
Pledge to pray for the repose of Pope Francis' soul
VATICAN CITY (LifeSiteNews) -- Pope Francis' funeral will take place on Saturday, April 26, the Vatican has announced, following the public veneration of his body in the days prior.
In an announcement issued Tuesday morning, the office of papal liturgical ceremonies gave details about Pope Francis' funeral and the public paying respect to his remains.
On Saturday morning at 10 a.m. Rome time, the funeral for the deceased pontiff will take place in St. Peter's Square. It will be presided over by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re who is Dean of the College of Cardinals. Following this, the pope's remains will be transferred inside the basilica, and from there will be taken to the Basilica of St Mary Major's, where he is to be buried in accord with his wishes.
READ: OBITUARY: Pope Francis has died aged 88
Prior to that, the pope's remains will be on public display in St. Peter's Basilica, for members of the faithful to pay their respects. He will be taken from the Casa Santa Martha guesthouse to the Vatican Basilica on Wednesday morning, and there displayed in front of the high altar for all to see.
Many thousands of pilgrims were due to be in Rome this weekend for the canonization of Blessed Carlo Acutis. However, following the pope's death on Monday morning, the ceremony has been postponed, with no replacement date yet being given. For many, though, their journey to Rome will still take place but with the sombre rites of a simplified papal funeral instead of the joyous ceremony of a canonization.
The announcement of the pope's funeral arrangements came during the course of the first of the General Congregations for the College of Cardinals, which began at 9 a.m. on Tuesday morning. [To read LifeSiteNews' full explainer on the process following a pope's death, see here]
Cardinals not already in Rome will have to hastily travel to the city, in order to take part in the congregations as well as the funeral.
The second of the General Congregations will take place tomorrow afternoon, after the cardinals join in the solemn rite of translation of the pope's body into the Vatican. As part of the Holy See's formal mourning period of nine days, the Novendiali, a Mass will be offered every afternoon at 5 p.m. The first day of the Novendiali is April 26, the date given for Francis' funeral.
As for the start of the conclave itself and the rounds of voting to elect a new pope, the Church's law stipulates that this must begin between 15 and 20 days after the pope dies. In this case, that would mean starting around May 6 at the earliest, and May 11 at the latest.
LifeSiteNews readers are invited to pray for the repose of Francis' soul, and for the cardinals now tasked with electing a new pope.
Pledge to pray for the repose of Pope Francis' soul
