Pope Francis to be Buried in Maria Maggiore Basilica Outside Vatican

21 April 2025: According to a report by The New York Times, Pope Francis expressed his intention to revise papal funeral traditions. In an interview with a Mexican broadcaster in 2023, he stated that he wished to be buried in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, rather than in St Peter’s Basilica, where most of his predecessors lie. He has a strong personal connection to Santa Maria Maggiore, having visited the basilica the day after his election and regularly stopping there before and after international trips to pray before the icon of the Virgin Mary, Salus Populi Romani (Protector of the People of Rome).

In 2024, Pope Francis formally modified the funeral rites, simplifying the rituals to highlight his role as a bishop and to permit burial outside the Vatican in accordance with his wishes. L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican newspaper, published details of the updated liturgical book, which Pope Francis approved on 29 April 2024. The new edition replaces the previous version, last issued in 2000.

The revised funeral rites eliminate the requirement for the pope’s body to lie on an elevated bier in St Peter’s Basilica for public viewing. Instead, the body will be displayed in a simple coffin. The updated guidelines also remove the traditional use of three coffins—cypress, lead, and oak.

Monsignor Diego Ravelli told L’Osservatore Romano that the simplification seeks “to emphasise even more that the Roman Pontiff’s funeral is that of a shepherd and disciple of Christ and not of a powerful man of this world.”

By Catholic Connect Reporter