By Gerarda M. Culipher, Esq.[1]
On June 29, 2022, almost three years before Pope Francis died, he took the time to compose his Last Will & Testament. The Vatican Press Office released its transcript the day the Jesuit Pontiff passed, Monday, April 21. 2025[2].
The Pope’s Will is a simple, sincere instruction on where he desired to be laid to rest. As an ordered priest and member of The Society of Jesus, the Jesuits, Jorge Mario Bergoglio took a vow of poverty, so the absence of any disposition of assets provisions makes sense.
What we are left with in his Testament is something more akin to a “Final Disposition Instruction,” which is a legalistic term, and a free-standing estate planning document that lays out your burial wishes.
In his own, thoughtful words, The Pontiff shared the following:
As I sense that the twilight of my earthly life is approaching, and with firm hope in Eternal Life, I wish to express my final wishes regarding my burial place…
I ask that my tomb be prepared in the burial niche in the side nave between the Pauline Chapel (Chapel of the Salus Populi Romani) and the Sforza Chapel of the aforementioned Papal Basilica, as indicated in the enclosed plan…
The tomb should be in the ground; simple, without particular ornamentation, and bearing only the inscription: Franciscus…I have given the appropriate instructions to Monsignor Rolandas Makrickas, Extraordinary Commissioner of the Liberian Chapter.
Domus Sanctae Marthae, 29 June 2022 Francis
Theology aside, this Testament is good for several reasons.
- Pope Francis describes the exact physical location of his tomb. There is no confusion about where his Personal Representative should have him interred. Many people elect to make prior arrangements with a cemetery, purchasing deeds to funeral plots, or purchasing a husband-wife location for cremated remains. I note that The Pontiff “asks” that his preferences be observed. Trademark humility? Or a Pragmatist’s confession that once we pass, we lose agency? By crafting an Estate Plan, we exert one, last, legal, command…but it is both wise and honest to “ask” that it be observed. Courts around America, and the world, strive to honor “the Testator’s intent[3],” so take heart that your family, friends, and courts, will do as you clearly ask.
- Pope Francis refers to the enclosed plan as a supplemental instruction, or “guide” to his Personal Representative, who will be administering his wishes. Even when you take the time to establish a thorough and legally-tight Estate Plan, and even when you have your “Final Disposition Instructions” set-out, some people elect to handwrite additional guidance or instructions, to aid your family. One common supplement is adding a music-list for the funeral, or even, supplying draft content for an Obituary. De-coupling the mechanics of establishing your legal Will and Testament, from deciding on granular-details can help keep Estate Planning uncluttered.
- Pope Francis specifically-named a trusted person to Administer his burial wishes…in this case, in 2022, a Lithuanian Monsignor (now Cardinal,) named Rolandas Makrickas, was Francis’ choice. This is often called the “Personal Representative” named in your Final Disposition Instruction. Many people elect to also name a “back-up” family member to “succeed” the first-choice Personal Representative.
- Pope Francis observed testamentary formalities, properly reciting his intentions. His Testament lists the Place, Date, and his Signature. This is a key element to almost any state or country’s law on the validity of a Will and Testament; and one that can be commonly overlooked, in an era of online-legal-forms; when it comes to your Estate Plan, forms alone will not suffice. Depending on your state, you may need two, disinterested witnesses and a Notary to witness the execution of your Will. While there may be ways to overcome technical failings of your estate planning documents, trying to save a Testator’s intentions on a facially-flawed document adds legal expense, perhaps even creating a “Will Contest” litigation that challenges the smooth administration of your Estate.
Interestingly, Pope Francis, as leader of one of the largest religions on the planet, and as head-of-state for the world’s smallest Nation, The Holy See/Vatican City, is first laid “in-state” inside St. Peter’s Square for three days, so that pilgrims, mourners, as well as global leaders, can come pay their respects. After the formal funeral mass in Vatican City, per Francis’s Testament, he will be interred about 25 minutes across Rome, at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. This Basilica dates to 600 A.D. and showcases Byzantine-influenced mosaics and was the very first Basilica commissioned by a Pope, and not by a Roman Emperor.
For more information on formalizing your funeral or burial wishes, or to discuss crafting a fulsome Estate Plan, contact us at Dominion Law Group, LLP, 703-865-2525, or through our website at Dominion Law Group, LLP – Estate Planning, Business Formation and Probate Legal Counsel in Great Falls and Leesburg, Virginia
[1] Gerarda M. Culipher, Esq. is a member of the DC and Virginia Bars, but is not trained in Cannon Law, so the jurisdictional/ecclesiastical law governing a testamentary document executed inside Vatican City may differ from your state law. For more on Cannon Law, see: Code of Canon Law: Table of Contents
[2]For the full text of Pope Francis’ Testament, see the Vatican Press Office’s official website: Testament of the Holy Father Francis
[3] Roller v. Shaver, 17 S.E.2d 419 (1941) and more recently, Justice Mims and the Virginia Supreme Court set about discerning a residuary clause, in Feeney v. Feeney, 811 S.E.2d 830 (2018).
