How New Pope Will Be Elected After Pope Francis’s Death? What Last Rituals Will Be Performed?

What rituals will be performed after the Pope’s death? What election process will be adopted to choose a new Pope? How will a new Pope be elected? Read more on Dynamite News

Vatican City: A wave of mourning has spread across the world after the news of the death of Pope Francis. But some answers remain inconclusive.

What rituals will be performed after the Pope's death? What election process will be adopted to choose a new Pope? How will a new Pope be elected?

88-year-old Pope Francis, who became Pope in 2013, was known for his simple life and liberal views. Now, after his death, the Roman Catholic Church will mourn under a special traditional process and prepare for the election of a new Pope, reports Dynamite News correspondent.

Vatican News announced the news of the death of the Pope through a tweet on April 21 at around 1:30 pm. However, the official confirmation of the death of the Pope will be done by the Camerlengo (Chamberlain) of the Church i.e. American Cardinal Kevin Farrell.

The Last Rituals

According to tradition, they tap the Pope's head three times with a silver hammer and call out his name. After this, the Pope's private residence is sealed and preparations for the funeral begin.

What happens next? The mourning rituals will last for nine days after the Pope's death. The cardinals will select the date of the funeral and burial.

The Pope's funeral usually happens on St. Peter's Square four to six days after he dies. But Pope Francis wanted to be buried in St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome, instead of the crypt at St. Peter's Basilica like previous popes.

Traditionally, the Pope is placed in a pinewood coffin, which is closed in a larger bronze coffin, and then placed in an outer pine wood coffin.

Who will take charge of the church after the Pope's death?

In the interim period between the death of the Pope and the election of a new Pope, the College of Cardinals will take over the administrative work. However, their powers will be limited, and many administrative functions of the Vatican will almost stop.

What's the process for electing the next Pope?

Within 15 to 20 days of the Pope's death, the election of the Pope begins in the Vatican's Sistine Chapel under a process called "conclave".

During this time, the cardinals stay in the Vatican premises, in the same hotel where Pope Francis resided, and eventually decide which day the election will begin.

The election of the Pope involves a secret ballot process, in which all cardinals who are under the age of 80 participate. A two-thirds majority with an additional vote is required to select the new Pope, so the election can last several rounds.

After the election, the newly elected Pope is asked whether he accepts the position and what name he would like to take. After this, he is dressed in the Pope's robe and sits on the throne in the Sistine Chapel, where other cardinals express their respect and loyalty to him.

How is the new Pope's name announced?

After the secret election, when the new Pope is elected, the ballot papers are burned with special chemicals, causing white smoke to come out of the chimney of the Sistine Chapel.

This white smoke indicates that the new Pope has been elected. If the voting is inconclusive, black smoke is used.

Succinctly after this, the Dean of the College of Cardinals gathers and comes to the main balcony of St. Peter's Basilica and announces: "Habemus Papam" (We have got a new Pope). After this, the new Pope appears before the people for the first time in his dress and blesses the masses.

At present, this whole process will be completed in the next 20 to 25 days after the death of Pope Francis. Now it remains to be seen which new Pope the world gets.