'Final Wish': Heartwarming Reason Why Pope Francis Chose Santa Maria Maggiore For His Burial

Pope Francis, known for his humility, has made a surprising choice for his final resting place. Instead of following centuries of tradition by being buried alongside his predecessors in St Peter's Basilica, he expressed a clear desire to be buried in Santa Maria Maggiore, his favourite Roman church.

Jorge Mario Bergoglio, first as a priest and then cardinal, consistently visited Santa Maria Maggiore, a key papal basilica in Rome. The fourth-century basilica, known for its unique bell tower, sits atop one of Rome's seven ancient hills, the Esquiline, a place that once served as a burial site for enslaved people during the Roman Empire.

During a trip, Bergoglio nearly got his pocket picked there once, but even that couldn't cool his passion for the place. In fact, the morning after they made him Pope in March 2013, he gave his security detail heart failure by slipping out of the Vatican to pray at Santa Maria Maggiore before anyone had their morning coffee.

Makes sense when you think about it – bloke named himself after Francis of Assisi, the posh lad who chucked it all in to help the poor. This final snub to the grand tombs of St Peter's is classic Francis – doing things his way right to the end.

A Lifelong Devotion

Throughout his 12-year papacy, he visited the basilica, roughly two and a half miles from Vatican City, over 100 times, often to pray before and after international journeys.

On 23 March, after being discharged from the hospital following a severe pneumonia, he paused to give flowers at the basilica on his way back to the Vatican. As reported by The Guardian, his latest trip there was on 12 April.

On 26 April, Pope Francis, who passed away at 88, will take his final journey to Santa Maria Maggiore for interment. Following his funeral mass in St. Peter's Square, where presidents, prime ministers, and royals will gather, Rome's poor and needy will offer him a final tribute at the basilica.

Francis breaks a century-old tradition by choosing not to be interred with elaborate ceremonies in the grottoes under St. Peter's Basilica. Instead, his plain wooden coffin will rest in a small alcove, previously used for candlestick storage. But what prompted his selection of Santa Maria Maggiore as his burial site?

His Final Wish: Why Santa Maria Maggiore?

Francis initially disclosed his burial preference in an April 2023 conversation with Javier Martínez-Brocal, the Vatican correspondent for the Spanish newspaper ABC, which was later detailed in his book-length interview, 'The Successor.'

'He told me he had simplified his funeral because he felt [papal funerals] were overembellished,' said Martínez-Brocal. 'He didn't want to be shown lying on cushions; he wanted to be more like a pastor.'

Francis explored numerous areas within the large basilica, ultimately selecting the niche in the left nave, adjacent to the Pauline Chapel, where the cherished Byzantine icon of Mary resides, a figure he regularly invoked in prayer.

As per his final testament released by the Vatican shortly after his death on 21 April, the tomb will be simple, with just his Latin papal name, Franciscus, inscribed upon it. When he saw the niche, Francis replied: 'This is my place, I want to be buried here,'" Martínez-Brocal said. 'It was essentially a closet.'

Francis explained to Martínez-Brocal that his 'great devotion' to Mary, the mother of God, made the basilica particularly dear to him. He also recounted his brush with the potential thief to the journalist, an incident he said 'I will never forget.'

Choosing His Place After A Close Call In The Basilica

'He was walking towards the basilica, and someone went up to him and said: "I don't have petrol, can you give me some money?" Martínez-Brocal said. 'He told him he didn't have any. The man then tried to sell him a flashy watch for pittance, but he sensed it was a trick.'

Francis said: 'Afterwards, I was told that if I had taken out my wallet, he would have punched me and stolen it' Even with that experience, Pope Francis, in his final testament, requested burial at St. Mary Major, having placed his 'priestly and episcopal life and ministry' to Mary.

'I wish my last earthly journey to end at this very ancient Marian shrine where I would go to pray at the beginning and end of each apostolic journey to confidently entrust my intentions to the Immaculate Mother and to thank her for her docile and maternal care,' he wrote. Notably, Pope Francis will not be the sole prominent individual buried at the basilica. Gian Lorenzo Bernini, the 17th-century Italian sculptor and architect, is entombed on the other side.