If the pontiff was to pass, a complicated weeks-long process begins to appoint a successor. Here, we break down what will happen in that unfortunate, but inevitable, event:
Pope Francis, 88, has been in hospital for over a week with a double pneumonia infection in both lungs. While his health remains in a fragile state, the world’s one billion Catholics are anxiously awaiting what may come next.
Farrell will then inform the College of Cardinals, before his death is announced to the world via a media statement from the Vatican. Pope Francis, who lost part of his lung to a respiratory infection in his youth, previously approved a pared-back funeral for himself, forgoing some of the more elaborate rituals that usually take place when a pope passes away. As such, the pope’s body will be displayed in an open coffin, and not on a raised platform like his predecessors.
Choosing a new pope About two weeks after the pope’s funeral, the College of Cardinals will meet in the Sistine Chapel to hold the highly secretive process of electing a new pope. Technically, any baptized male Roman Catholic is eligible for the papacy, but for the past 700 years, the pope has always been chosen from the College of Cardinals.
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