What Will Happen To The Body Of Pope Francis?

Catholics and non-believers the world over were saddened to hear that Pope Francis, the 266th high pontiff of the Catholic Church, died on April 21, 2025. He was 88 years old. The pope had previously been admitted to Gemelli Hospital in Rome two months earlier, where he was treated for a complex set of conditions, including pneumonia and thrombocytopenia, i.e., a low blood platelet count. The pope's respiratory system was sensitive and prone to pneumonia following a bout of pleurisy — lung inflammation — when he was young. He was discharged in late March, albeit visibly frail.

The pope's death leaves the public with a number of questions, such as who will take his place and what funeral services there will be. Traditionally, papal death rites incorporate a complex set of ceremonies laid out in the "Ordo Exsequiarum Romani Pontificis," a handbook outlining how to proceed after the pope dies and what happens to their bodies. Upon death, for instance, a clergyman typically calls out the pope's name, and if he is truly dead, his signet ring is destroyed to represent the end of his reign. Typically, the pope also gets interred in a series of three interlocking coffins, one inside the other: cypress, then lead, then oak.

In April 2024, however, Pope Francis updated the Ordo Exsequiarum Romani Pontificis to change the rules regarding what happens to him after death. In keeping with the pope's ethos of humility and simplicity (he refused to live in the luxurious papal apartment), he elected for a simpler, pared-back set of rituals. Most notably, he got rid of the traditional three-nested coffins.

As mentioned, Pope Francis updated the "Ordo Exsequiarum Romani Pontificis" to outline what to do with his body after death, so we need not wonder what will happen to him. Saint John Paul II approved the first version of the "Ordo Exsequiarum Romani Pontificis" in 1998, which was used for the funeral of Pope Benedict XVI in 2023, with some adjustments. As Vatican News quotes Archbishop Diego Ravelli, "A second edition became necessary, first of all because Pope Francis has requested it, as he himself has stated on several occasions of the need to simplify and adapt certain rites." Ravelli, the master of apostolic ceremonies who will lead Pope Francis' funeral services, also said that the revised rules "needed to emphasize even more that the funeral of the Roman Pontiff is that of a pastor and disciple of Christ and not of a powerful person of this world."

The handling of Pope Francis' body reflects these updated rules. Rather than be placed in a three-layered coffin with golden nails like other popes before him, his body will be placed in a single, simple coffin. This coffin will have a zinc lining and wooden exterior, so that when the wood crumbles away, the zinc inside will remain. Upon death, the pope will be immediately placed in this coffin, which is another change to the rules. 

Pope Francis made one more big change to the treatment of his body after death, per his updated funereal rules in the Ordo Exsequiarum Romani Pontificis. Ninety-one other popes (out of 266) are buried in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. But Pope Francis will be interred outside of Vatican City in Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome. Santa Maria Maggiore is one of the four papal basilicas in Rome, and a pilgrimage site for Catholics traveling to the area. This is the location where popes often pray before heading abroad. 

Before heading to Santa Maria Maggiore, the pope's body will be on display at St. Peter's. Rather than the pope's body being elevated on a raised platform called a catafalque, however, it will be at ground level with the lid off. This is intended to be another gesture of humility and simplicity, and will allow visiting Catholics, world leaders, dignitaries, etc., to view his body and pay their respects before the pope is interred. This period of time, known as the Novendiale and considered a time of national mourning, lasts nine days.