Pope Francis died of cerebral stroke and heart failure: Vatican doctor

BREAKINGBREAKING,

Pope Francis died of a cerebral stroke and irreversible heart failure, Vatican doctor Andrea Arcangeli has said in a death certificate.

The certificate released on Monday for the 88-year-old pontiff said the pope had fallen into a coma before his death earlier in the day.

Pope Francis died of “cerebral stroke, coma, irreversible cardiocirculatory collapse”, the death certificate said. It added the religious leader, who had been the first Latin American pontiff in the history of the Roman Catholic Church, died at 7:35am local time (0535 GMT) in his apartment at the Santa Marta residence in the Vatican.

Just a day earlier, the pontiff made what would be his final major appearance as he greeted thousands of Easter worshippers from an open-top Popemobile in St Peter’s Square and delivered a blessing through an aide.

Pope Francis had suffered various ailments during his 12-year papacy, with severe complications in recent weeks following a bout of double pneumonia for which he spent 38 days at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital.

The death certificate added that Francis also suffered from arterial hypertension, multiple bronchiectasis and Type 2 diabetes, ailments which had not been previously disclosed.

The Vatican also released Pope Francis’s spiritual testament – a written statement of faith – in which he said he wished to be buried in Rome’s Basilica of Saint Mary Major and not at St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, unlike many of his predecessors.

The text specified Pope Francis wanted to be buried “in the ground, without particular decoration” but with the inscription of his papal name in Latin: Franciscus.

“As I sense the approaching twilight of my earthly life, and with firm hope in eternal life, I wish to set out my final wishes solely regarding the place of my burial,” read the testament, which was dated June 29, 2022.

“May the Lord grant a fitting reward to all those who have loved me and who continue to pray for me,” it said.

The Vatican began on Monday evening a Rosary prayer in St. Peter’s Square in its first public commemoration following Pope Francis’ death. Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica, led the prayer at sunset.

Sister Raffaella Petrini, president of the Vatican City State and one of the highest ranking women at the Vatican, delivered the first reading. Her appointment was a sign of Francis’ insistence that women be given more prominent, decision-making roles.

Pope Francis’s passing marks the beginning of nine days of mourning called the Novendiale.

His body will be dressed in papal vestments and placed in St Peter’s Basilica for public viewing ahead of his burial. Daily prayer services and requiem masses will be held in Catholic churches worldwide and at St Peter’s Basilica during this time.

The Vatican also enters a transitional period called the sede vacante or interregnum, where power is handed over to the College of Cardinals, but no major decisions will be made until the papacy is filled.