Two Papal Deaths 20 Years Apart: One Expected, the Other a Surprise

 

Two Papal Deaths 20 Years Apart: One Expected, the Other a Surprise When Pope John Paul II passed away on the evening of April 2, 2005, the world was acutely aware that his death was imminent. He had been on his deathbed for several days, and the light in the window of his bedroom overlooking St. Peter's Square served as a tangible connection for the faithful. Fast forward 20 years, and the death of Pope Francis on Monday at the age of 88 came as a shock, despite his ongoing recovery from a hospital stay due to double pneumonia. In the days leading up to his passing, Francis had made several brief public appearances, giving reassuring signals of his determination to gradually return to work. Many Romans were away for the Easter holiday, leading most of the visitors who flocked to the square upon hearing the news of his death to be tourists curious about the event. In stark contrast, when John Paul II died, tens of thousands had gathered in the square, praying throughout the day and into the night. Archbishop Leonardo Sandri, now a cardinal, was in the papal apartments when he instructed Monsignor Renato Boccardo, who was about to lead a procession in the square, to wait. Sandri then stepped outside to join Boccardo on the steps of St. Peter’s, where he announced to the crowd that John Paul had "returned to the house of the Father." The crowd erupted in tears, but the news was not unexpected. Pope Benedict XVI, Francis' immediate predecessor, passed away at the age of 95 in 2022, living outside the public spotlight after resigning from the papacy in 2013.

See also: Iglesia Católica Dominates Online Conversation in Italy and the United States Following Pope Francis’ Death.

Modest Surroundings Pope Francis died in his modest suite at the Santa Marta guesthouse, a residence he chose after his election in 2013, opting for simplicity over the spacious papal apartments in the Apostolic Palace, which overlook St. Peter's Square—a symbolic gesture towards the world. Francis' suite faced a small internal courtyard, adjacent to St. Peter's Basilica, and was close to an imposing centuries-old defensive wall that marks the boundary between the world's smallest state and Rome. Unlike the farewell that accompanied John Paul II's death, Francis died in relative privacy, with no one gathered below his windows to represent the outside world. On Monday morning, Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the camerlengo who will oversee the Vatican's everyday operations in the coming weeks, announced the pope’s death through the Vatican's TV channel. He spoke from a small room, flanked by a few senior Vatican officials as he addressed the camera. Using the same words Sandri had spoken two decades prior in a far more emotional context, Farrell stated that the pope had "returned to the house of the Father."