Overview

• Pope Francis, who passed away on Easter Monday at 88 from a stroke, is currently laid out in Casa Santa Marta, with a procession to St. Peter’s Basilica scheduled for Wednesday morning.
• The funeral Mass will take place Saturday at 10 a.m. in St. Peter’s Square, led by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, followed by burial in Santa Maria Maggiore as per the Pope’s testament.
• World leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and French President Emmanuel Macron, are expected to attend the funeral, highlighting its diplomatic significance.
• The College of Cardinals has assumed interim governance during the sedisvakanz, with no major decisions permitted until a new Pope is elected in early May by 135 eligible cardinals.
• The conclave will follow traditional rules, requiring a two-thirds majority vote in the Sistine Chapel, with white smoke signaling the successful election of the next pontiff.