Pope wants to simplify papal funeral rites, be buried outside Vatican
VATICAN
CITY, Dec 13 (Reuters) - Pope Francis, who has shunned much of the
Vatican's pomp and privilege, has decided to vastly simplify the
elaborate funeral rites for a pontiff and be the first one to be buried
outside the Vatican in more than a century.
The
pope, who turns 87 on Sunday, disclosed plans for his funeral in an
interview with Mexico's N+ television on Tuesday evening to mark the
feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
In
the interview with the network's Vatican correspondent, Valentina
Alazraki, taped before the pope presided at a Mass in St. Peter's
Basilica, Francis appeared to have recovered from a bout of bronchitis.
He laughed often while discussing subjects such as his health,
migration, his relationship with the late Pope Benedict XVI, and travel
plans. He said his health was good but asked for prayers as he deals
with the limitations of old age.
Francis disclosed that he has been working with the Vatican's master of
ceremonies, Archbishop Diego Ravelli, to simplify the elaborate,
book-long funeral rites for a pope that have been used for his
predecessors.
Since
his election in 2013, Francis has shunned the crimson, fur-trimmed
"mozzetta", or cape, and also does not wear a gold cross but has kept
around his neck the same faded silver-plated one he used as archbishop
of Buenos Aires.
He
also has not used the plush red "shoes of the fisherman" used by his
predecessors. He has kept the same simple black shoes he always used and
wears a plastic watch, giving others away so they could be auctioned
off for charity.
HEALTH 'GOOD', 'IMPROVED'
Francis
said that because of his devotion to Mary, the Mother of God, he has
decided to be buried in Rome's Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, where
he traditionally goes to pray before and after each of his foreign
trips. The funeral Mass itself would be expected to be held in St.
Peter's Square.
Many
popes are buried in the crypts beneath St. Peter's Basilica. The last
pope to be buried outside the Vatican was Leo XIII, who died in 1903 and
is buried in the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome.
Francis
has said he would be ready to resign - as Benedict did in 2013 - if his
health became extremely bad, but also believes that papal resignations
should not become the norm.
He
acknowledged that since Benedict's death a year ago perhaps he had
become less patient and more firm with his more strident conservative
critics who saw the late pope as their standard bearer, saying that
sometimes "there are some you need to stand up to a bit".
Francis took disciplinary action against two conservative U.S. prelates last month.
Asked
about his health, he said: "I feel good, I feel improved. Sometimes I'm
told I'm not prudent because I feel like doing things and moving
around. I guess those are good signs, no? I am quite well".
The
bronchitis forced Francis to cancel a trip to Dubai this month to
attend the COP28 climate summit. He had surgery in June to repair an
abdominal hernia and appears to have recovered completely from that
operation.
He
said he was hoping to make three trips next year, to somewhere in
Polynesia, to Belgium, and to his native Argentina for his first visit
there since his election in 2013.
