Pope Francis' funeral: Anonymous donor covers costs
Pope Francis will be buried on Saturday. Hundreds of thousands of faithful attendees and 170 state delegations are expected at his funeral. Who will cover the costs of the ceremony? Surprisingly, it will not be the Vatican but a mysterious benefactor.
What do you need to know?
- The funeral for Pope Francis is scheduled for Saturday.
- The Pope left detailed instructions regarding the location and method of his burial.
- In his will, he also specified who will pay for the funeral expenses.
Mysterious anonymous benefactor
On the day Pope Francis passed away, the Vatican revealed his last will. The will, dated June 29, 2022, contains specific instructions for his funeral and identifies who will pay for it.
"The expenses for the preparation of my burial will be covered by the sum of the benefactor that I have arranged, to be transferred to the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore and of which I have provided appropriate instructions to Rolandas Makrickas (a Catholic cardinal) Extraordinary Commissioner of the Liberian Chapter," the will states.
The donation is already in the basilica's account
According to businessinsider.com.pl, the Vatican press office confirmed that the donation from an anonymous donor has already been deposited into the account of the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major. However, the donor's name, origin, and reasons for donating have not been disclosed.
Currently, as reported by ara.cat, it has not been disclosed how much the funeral for Pope Francis will cost. Indications suggest that it will be more modest than the funeral of John Paul II in 2005.
The Spanish news service ara.cat reports that, according to official Vatican data, the funeral of John Paul II and the conclave that elected his successor, Benedict XVI, cost about 7 million euros (approximately 7.95 million US dollars). These costs covered expenses for religious ceremonies, logistical matters, and extensive security measures during that time.
