Pope Francis has been remembered as a leader who “knew how to give hope” following his death on Monday aged 88.
The remains of the pontiff, who Vatican doctors said died of a stroke and heart failure, are expected to be transferred to St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican on Wednesday morning to allow the faithful to pray in their presence.
Francis, known for shunning the trappings of the papacy, requested that his body be placed in a zinc-lined coffin, which will remain open until the night before his funeral, rather than lying on a raised platform in St Peter’s, as was the case for previous popes.
His funeral could take place as early as Friday, with Vatican authorities expected to confirm the details later on Tuesday.
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During his papacy, Francis clashed with traditionalists as he pushed for a more inclusive Catholic Church. He spoke out tirelessly for migrants and the marginalised, urged an end to global conflicts and highlighted the need to protect the environment.
President Michael D Higgins led tributes from Ireland following news of the pope’s death, saying Francis had shared important messages with the world “with a unique humility”.
World leaders also paid tribute, with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy saying the pope “knew how to give hope, ease suffering through prayer, and foster unity”.
“He prayed for peace in Ukraine and for Ukrainians. We grieve together with Catholics and all Christians who looked to Pope Francis for spiritual support,” he said.
Archbishop of Armagh Eamon Martin said Francis “didn’t shy away from tackling” the impact of clerical abuse, and that he leaves a lasting legacy. The Association of Catholic Priests described him as the pope who “helped Catholicism to smile again”.
The formal rite of ascertainment of the pope’s death took place at 8pm on Monday in the chapel at the Vatican’s Santa Marta guest house, where Francis had resided since his election in March 2013.
The ceremony was presided over by Dublin-born Cardinal Kevin Farrell, exercising one of his duties on the death of a pope as Camerlengo. He will oversee the running of the Vatican until a new pope is elected next month.
In revising procedures for the conduct of papal funerals last year, Pope Francis did away with the practice of a pope’s cypress coffin being placed inside a zinc coffin and then inside a coffin made of unspecified wood. He will, instead, be buried in the same zinc-lined wooden coffin used at his funeral.
Normally, following a papal funeral, the coffin is taken to the grotto of St Peter’s Basilica for burial. However, Francis explicitly requested that he be buried at the Basilica of St Mary Major in the centre of Rome.
In the book Hope, published last January, he said: “I will not be buried in St Peter’s but at St Mary Major. The Vatican is the home of my last service, not my eternal home.”
He said he wished to “go in the room where they now keep the candelabra”, a small storage space between a statue of Mary, Queen of Peace, and the chapel featuring the Marian icon Salus Populi Romani, which he prayed at before and after each of his foreign trips.
It was also the first place he went to upon his election as Pope 12 years ago, and where he went to pray again on March 23rd last after his 38-day stay at Rome’s Gemelli hospital due to double pneumonia.
He appeared in his wheelchair to bless the faithful in St Peter’s Square on Easter Sunday, just hours before his death.
His funeral Mass is the first of nine formal Masses, called the “novendiali” (nine days), celebrated following the death of a pope. When the nine days have passed, the church begins the Ordo Rituum Conclavis, the Rites of the Conclave.
The conclave at which his successor will be elected is not expected to take place for some time after the funeral. Ahead of his election in 2013, there were seven “general congregations” of cardinals between March 4th and 12th before the conclave began.
A total of 76 countries are represented among the 252 members of the College of Cardinals who will decide the next pope. Just 138 cardinals are aged under 80, a requirement for being entitled to vote. Ireland’s only cardinal, former Archbishop of Armagh Seán Brady, is 85 and cannot vote.
The European considered most likely to be next pope is thought to be Maltese Cardinal Mario Grech (66). As secretary general of the Synod of Bishops since 2020, he has overseen the ongoing synodal process initiated by Pope Francis, which many see as probably the great legacy of his pontificate.
[ Pope Francis dies aged 88: A life in picturesOpens in new window ]
Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle (67), a former archbishop of Manila representing Asia’s most Catholic country, is also regarded as a contender. He is currently prefect at the Vatican’s Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples.
A favoured Italian is Cardinal Matteo Zuppi (69), Archbishop of Bologna and president of the Episcopal Conference of Italy. A long shot could be Cardinal Peter Turkson (76), from Ghana, whose age may go against him.
