The death of a head of the Catholic Church entails well-defined ceremonial procedures. In the case of the death of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. However, the Vatican protocol is breaking new ground. An overview:
mourning time
A deceased pope is commemorated with a nine-day period of mourning, which bears the Latin name “Novemdiales”. Normally, following the death of a pope, the cardinals must also elect his successor. This is not necessary, however, since Benedict XVI’s successor, Pope Francis, has been in office since 2013.
funeral service and burial
Benedict XVI is the first pope to resign from office in more than six centuries. The Vatican has declined to say what will happen in the event of his death. According to Vatican rules, a pope must be buried four to six days following his death.
The Benedict biographer Peter Seewald declared in 2020 that the retired Pope would like a burial in the former grave of his predecessor John Paul II in St. Peter’s Basilica. After John Paul’s beatification in 2011, his body was reburied in a chapel in the aisle of St. Peter’s Basilica.
The exact timetable for the funeral ceremony is usually determined by the cardinals. They travel from all over the world to take part in the funeral service and the funeral of the Pope.
In 2005 the body of John Paul II was laid out in St. Peter’s Square. Numerous heads of state and crowned heads paid their last respects to the longstanding head of the church. At that time, Joseph Ratzinger, head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, led the funeral ceremony. Shortly therefollowing, the channels chose him as the new Pope Benedict XVI.
The Vatican expert Monsignor Claudio Magnoli says that since Ratzinger was Pope, the rites “that are used at the funeral of a Pope” also apply to him. The “essential difference” to the predecessors of Benedict XVI. consists in the fact that the ceremony can be conducted by an incumbent pope instead of by one of the cardinals.
About a million people attended the funeral service for the charismatic John Paul II on St. Peter’s Square. Since Benedict XVI. did not hold office for as long and was not as popular as his predecessor and he did not die in office, the number of participants is likely to be somewhat lower.
Destruction of the signet ring
A ring is specially made for each pope as a sign of his power. The head of the church uses this so-called fisherman’s ring as a seal for documents. Benedict’s signet ring was made unusable with an “X” following his resignation. The piece of jewelry is taken from the finger of a deceased pope and then broken.
