Obituary- In the modern age, a doctor will confirm the Pope’s death, but only the Camerlengo (Chamberlin) can initiate the complex process of rituals that begins after his death.
The Camerlengo is the Vatican’s overseer of property and revenues and it is his job to execute the protocols and organize the funeral and the current Camerlengo is Cardinal Kevin Farrell, who has held the post since 2019.
He will refer to a 400-page handbook called “Funeral Rites of the Roman Pontiff” that will guide him through the strict protocols governing a papal funeral.
Firstly, he will call out the Pope’s baptismal name three times (Jorge Mario Bergoglio for Pope Francis). This was traditionally done to ensure the Pope was dead and not just sleeping. Only when he receives no answer does he confirm the official death of the Pope.
The next step is the ceremonial destruction of the “Fisherman’s Ring”. This was traditionally a very important step as the ring was used as the seal of the Pope on official documents.
Its destruction was to safeguard against any misuse, such as the ring being used to forge documents, but today, the act is purely symbolic and signifies the end of the Pope’s authority.
Finally, the Papal apartments are sealed, a measure that historically was meant to guard against looting.
The first indication that the public receives of a Pope’s death is the mourning bell of St. Peter’s Basilica where the bell of the Basilica tolls for every year of a Pope’s life and it chimed 84 times when Pope Saint John Paul II in 2005.
The bells did not chime in 2013 when Pope Benedict XVI’s Papacy ended, as he didn’t die; he resigned.
The Vatican has now entered an interregnum period known as Sede Vacante and the throne of St. Peter is empty.
