The Vatican is slowly moving on to the latest preparations for his funeral Pope Francisas the last group of Catholics passes through the Basilica of St. Peter to see his open casket and pay tribute.
Pontiff will be buried in the 10 on Saturday morning (26.04.2025) in St. Peter’s Square, after three days of public promotion and popular pilgrimage. According to his wishes, Pope Francis will be buried in a simple wooden coffin, abandoning the traditional triple coffin layout.
Above 128,000 people gathered at St. Peter’s Basilica by Wednesday, with the Vatican to keep its doors open overnight to manage the growing crowd.
Pope Francis’ coffin will close at 20:00 local time at a ceremony where senior cardinals will be attended. The cardinal Kevin Farrellwho directs the Vatican’s daily cases until he is elected new Pope, will chair the so -called “Coffee sealing ritualยป.
About 50 Heads of State and 10 Monarchsincluding US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Voludimir Zelenski, are expected to land in Rome at some point today ahead of Saturday’s ceremony at St. Peter’s Square.
The Italian authorities and authorities of the Vatican put the area around St. Peter under strict security measures before the funeral, with drones excluded, snipers on the roofs and fighter aircraft.
After the funeral, the Franciscan casket will be driven on foot to be buried In his beloved churchher papal basilica Santa Maria Maggiore of Rome.
It will be buried on the ground, its simple tomb will be marked in just one word: Franciscan. People will be able to visit the grave from Sunday morning.
After that, all eyes will turn to process of selecting the Franciscan successor.
Cardinals from all over the world returned to Rome for funeral while the Conclave He is getting ready for the election of a new Pontiff. In the absence of the Pope, the cardinals meet daily to agree on the next steps, and their new meeting is expected.
No date has been announced yet for the Conclave. However, it should not start before 15 and over 20 days after the death of a Pope. Only those who are Under 80 years of age – Currently about 135 cardinals – have the right to vote.