Vatican releases first images of Pope Francis resting in his casket; funeral on Saturday

The Vatican on Tuesday released the first images of Pope Francis following his death, showing the 88-year-old pontiff lying in repose inside the private chapel of the Casa Santa Marta, his official residence where he breathed his last on Monday.

Dressed in red vestments with a bishop’s mitre on his head and a rosary placed in his hands, Pope Francis rests in an open wooden casket. The images captured Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin praying beside the body.

The pope will be taken to St. Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday morning and his funeral will be held on Saturday.

The Vatican announced that Pope Francis died of complications following a severe cerebral stroke, which led to a coma and eventually irreversible heart failure. “The Holy Father suffered a severe cerebral stroke that resulted in a coma,” said Dr. Andrea Arcangeli, head of the Vatican’s health department. “Despite intensive care, it led to irreversible heart failure.”

He added that the pope’s existing conditions — including respiratory insufficiency, bilateral pneumonia, type 2 diabetes, and hypertension — had significantly complicated his recovery.

Cardinal Kevin Farrell, a 77-year-old Irish-American prelate, has stepped in as the acting head of the Vatican during the period known as Sedes Vacans. As camerlengo, a role Pope Francis appointed him to in 2019, Farrell is responsible for certifying the pontiff’s death, sealing his private quarters, organising the funeral rites, and preparing for the conclave to elect the next pope. “The pope has returned to the home of the Father,” Cardinal Farrell announced, ushering in a new chapter of transition for the Catholic Church.