In Saint Peter’s Square, the worshippers are now chasing down wagons hurriedly carting away the tulips and lilies from Easter, stealing flowers as if to hold onto something fleeting; on the radio show La Zanzara the viral TikToker Bombolino pushes the conspiracy theory claiming the Pope has been dead since February, and as the Conclave approaches, Italy is frustrated by the fact that wagering on the papal election is illegal. We too wish we could join the “toto-Papa” market, as it has already driven over $4.5 million in bets on platforms like Polymarket. Online, a flood of posts portray Vance as a Neapolitan jinxer, complete with red horns to ward off bad luck—a surreal, Pasolinian fusion of sacred and profane that would have made him smile.
But alongside the gossip and the gallows humor, the ancient and solemn rituals continue. Massimo tells me the story of the camerlengo, the official who gently calls out the Pope’s baptismal name three times once he is found dead—a centuries-old rite, meant to confirm the Pope’s passing. A medical evaluation is also now part of the protocol today.
Massimo tells me Pope Francis had previously simplified these funeral rites. One of his most symbolic choices is to be buried outside the Vatican, in the church of Santa Maria Maggiore—a place he would visit before and after every major trip. The decision, according to La Repubblica, was an intentional move to avoid the monumentalization of his figure. “He chose to leave the sacred perimeter of the Vatican palaces in death, becoming a migrant toward a burial rooted in prayer.” He will go down in history as the first pope in over a century to be buried outside the Vatican walls. Another revolutionary element is the fact that Francis called himself the Bishop of Rome. “That’s why he refused to emphasize other titles like Vicar of Christ or Supreme Pontiff,” Massimo explains. “He also asked to be laid to rest in a simple casket. He wanted his death to be less spectacular, more in tune with the times—a renewal of millennial practices and ceremonies. His goal was not to be remembered as a powerful man, but as a simple Christian who died in a casket like everyone else.”
