Pope Francis’ funeral will be held on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. local Rome time (4:00 a.m. ET) and more than 200,000 people are expected to attend the deceased Vicar of Christ’s services.
Thousands of mourners have taken to the Vatican this week to pay their final respects to Pope Francis following his death on Monday.
The funeral Mass will be held on the parvis of St. Peter’s Basilica, and His Most Reverend Eminence Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals, will preside over the Catholic rites and blessings.
Mass will begin with an Entrance Antiphon, typically sung or recited by clergy and mourners.
Then, the congregation will acknowledge their sins with the Penitential Act followed by the Collect, or opening prayer.
Cardinal Battista will then extend the First Reading, a reading from the Acts of the Apostles, to the congregation of worshipers.
The Responsorial Psalm “The Lord is my Shepherd,” or “Psalm 23,” is to be sung. The Second Reading, a reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Philippians, typically recited by an instituted lector at a pope’s funeral, will be heard among parishioners.
The Acclamation and the Gospel will follow.
Cardinal Battista will give the Homily, a reflection, which includes prayer for Pope Francis, the faithful departed and the congregation. The dean of the Roman Catholic Church’s College of Cardinals will consecrate the Body and Blood of Christ and invite the faithful to receive Holy Communion following the Communion Rite, or the Our Father prayer.
Requiem Aeternam, a chant often heard among funeral-goers, is to be recited during Communion, followed by a prayer.
Cardinal Battista will offer a final Commendation and Farewell including the Prayer of the Church in Rome and the Prayer of Eastern Churches.
The funeral liturgy “I Know That My Redeemer Lives” will be sung or chanted by the congregation, and Mass will conclude with the Canticle of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Pope Francis will be buried in a wooden casket at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, a place he often visited with flowers during his 12-year papacy.
What to expect from the Novendiali
The Novendiali, an ancient and customary nine-day period of prayer, remembrance and mourning, will begin on the day of Pope Francis’ funeral on the parvis of St. Peter’s Basilica.
Pope Francis’ Holy Mass led by His Most Reverend Eminence Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals, will commence the nine Masses in memory of the deceased pontiff.
While the Masses are open to public audiences, they are specifically held for employees and faithful of Vatican City.
The schedule is as follows, according to the Vatican:
- Sunday, April 27, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. local Rome time, 4:30 a.m. ET, on the parvis of the Vatican Basilica for the employees and faithful of Vatican City StateThe funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Pietro Parolin, former Secretary of State
- The funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Pietro Parolin, former Secretary of State
- Monday, April 28, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. local Rome time, 11:00 a.m. ET, in the Vatican Basilica for the Church of RomeThe funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Baldassare Reina, vicar general of His Holiness for the diocese of Rome
- The funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Baldassare Reina, vicar general of His Holiness for the diocese of Rome
- Tuesday, April 29, 2025, at 5 p.m. local Rome time, 11 a.m. ET, in the Vatican Basilica for the Chapters of the Papal BasilicasThe funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, archpriest of the Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican
- The funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, archpriest of the Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican
- Wednesday, April 30, 2025, at 5 p.m. local Rome time, 11 a.m. ET, in the Vatican Basilica for the Papal ChapelThe funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, vice dean of the College of Cardinals
- The funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, vice dean of the College of Cardinals
- Thursday, May 1, 2025, at 5 p.m. local Rome time, 11 a.m. ET, in the Vatican Basilica for the Roman CuriaThe funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell, Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church
- The funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell, Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church
- Friday, May, 2, 2025, at 5 p.m. local Rome time, 11 a.m. ET, in the Vatican Basilica for the Eastern ChurchesThe funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, former prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches
- The funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, former prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches
- Saturday, May 3, 2025, at 5 p.m. local Rome time, 11 a.m. ET, in the Vatican Basilica for the members of the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic LifeThe funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Ángel Fernández Artime, former pro-prefect of the Dicastery for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life
- The funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Ángel Fernández Artime, former pro-prefect of the Dicastery for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life
- Sunday, May 4, at 5 p.m. local Rome time, 11 a.m. ET, in the Vatican Basilica for the Papal ChapelThe funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, protodeacon of the College of Cardinals
- The funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, protodeacon of the College of Cardinals
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