The funeral of a Pope is usually done with great pomp. François will not escape the rule, but unlike his predecessors, he requested a more modest burial. It is above all a symbol, for a Pope who shapes his image so close to the most private.
Then, to reduce the bill of his funeral, François inaugurated some changes. In 2024, he had modified the burial rules in force, which required that a Pope was buried in three nested coffins (lead, oak or elmo, and cypress). From now on, only a wooden coffin lined with zinc will be enough.
A grave “on Earth, simple, without particular decoration”
Another surprising event, François asked to be buried outside the Vatican, in the main basilica of Sainte-Marie, in the center of Rome, instead of in the crypt of the Saint-Pierre basilica. He will be the first Pope to be buried in this Church since the seventeenth century, and the first for more than 100 years to be buried outside the Vatican.
Chosen in Papacy in 2013, François was known for his modest lifestyle. A habit that wanted to perpetuate even in the grave. In his will, he asked for a burial “on the ground, simple, without any particular decoration and with the only registration: Franciscus”, his name in Latin.
In addition, his grave should not cost the Vatican penny because the costs will be assumed by an anonymous donor. “The costs of preparing my burial will be covered by the donation of the benefactor that had transferred to the papal basilica of Sainte-Marie-Mojeure,” François said in his will.
Financial difficulties in the Vatican
The burials of the potatoes are generally very expensive and represent a significant financial weight for the finance of the Vatican, which are already exsanguelos. Therefore, according to figures from Al Jazeera, the funeral of Pope John Paul II in 2005 and the choice of his successor Benoît XVI cost $ 9 million (around $ 14.7 million today).
The Vatican did not respond to requests for the cost of the planned ceremonial around François. But financial difficulties accumulate for the city-state. The last official figure communicated by the Vatican reported in 2023 a deficit of 83.5 million euros with a budget of 1.2 billion, a 7%deficit.
According to the Reuters news agency, which cites two sources to the fact of the archive last year, the Church recorded a budget deficit of $ 87 million. During his life, Pope Francis had also promised to reduce operating expenses and salaries of certain cardinals.
Source: BFM TV
