Vatican Pool/Getty Images
On the level of world politics, he was always a very vocal pope in calling for the fight against socio-economic inequalities in all parts of the world and especially in calling for the cessation of all conflict.
A call for peace that was also reiterated in his last Urbi et Orbi address, delivered on Sunday, April 20, precisely on Easter Day: “I would like us to return to the hope that peace is possible! From the Holy Sepulcher, Church of the Resurrection, where this year Easter is celebrated on the same day by Catholics and Orthodox, may the light of peace radiate over the entire Holy Land and the whole world.”
Una delle foto più significative del pontificato di Francesco, la preghiera solitaria in piazza San Pietro il 27 marzo 2020, in pieno CovidVatican Pool – Corbis/Getty Images
What will happen now? The funeral (revolutionised by Francis) and the Conclave
As always, the death of a pontiff like Pope Francis marks the beginning of a long and complex ritual rooted in the Church’s age-old tradition, despite some changes introduced more recently. After the determination of death by the Camerlengo (the aforementioned Farrell), the cardinal in charge of presiding over the government of the Holy See during the period of the so-called “sede vacante,” the bronze door of St. Peter’s is half-closed and bells ring. The pontiff’s body is transported to the Sistine Chapel, where it is embalmed and clothed, in preparation for display to the faithful who come on pilgrimage, for a duration of three days. As revolutionised by Bergoglio, his body will not be displayed on a scenic catafalque, as has been the case until now, but in a simple open wooden coffin, so that he can be greeted “with dignity, but like every Christian.”
The pope’s funeral, called Missa poenitentialis, is celebrated in St. Peter’s Square in front of delegations of the world’s governments, the assembled faithful – in addition to being broadcast worldwide. The pontiff’s body is placed in…
