Akeem Lasisi
As the world bid Pope Francis farewell, the way the Vatican announced the passage rings an idiomatic cord.
The Pope died on Monday at the age of 88, sparking a hail of tributes by world leaders and other dignitaries.
The Vatican confirmed that the pontiff passed away on Easter Monday at his residence in the Casa Santa Marta within Vatican City.
Announcing the death, however, the Camerlengo of the Apostolic Chamber, Cardinal Kevin Farrell, said: “Francis, returned to the house of the Father.”
This idiomatic piece would remind people familiar with Yoruba culture how the death of an oba (monarch) is usually announced.
The Yoruba king does not die; rather, he joins his ancestors and, in Yoruba ‘Oba waja’ or ‘Oba papo da’.
Meanwhile, the announcement of Pope’s death by Cardinal Farrel read, “Dearest brothers and sisters, with deep sorrow, I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis.
“At 7:35 this morning, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the Father.
“With immense gratitude for his example as a true disciple of the Lord Jesus, we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the infinite merciful love of the One and Triune God.”
It would be recalled that Pope has been undergoing recovery after he was discharged from the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic Hospital.
After 38 days in the hospital, the late Pope returned to his Vatican residence at the Casa Santa Marta to continue his recovery.
The Pope was admitted on Friday, February 14, 2025, after suffering from a bout of bronchitis for several days.
Pope Francis’ clinical situation gradually worsened, and his doctors diagnosed bilateral pneumonia on Tuesday, February 18.
In 1957, in his early 20s, Jorge Mario Bergoglio underwent surgery in his native Argentina to remove a portion of his lung that had been affected by a severe respiratory infection.
As he aged, Pope Francis frequently suffered bouts of respiratory illnesses, even cancelling a planned visit to the United Arab Emirates in November 2023 due to influenza and lung inflammation.
The second edition of the Ordo Exsequiarum Romani Pontificis introduces several new elements, including how the Pope’s mortal remains are to be handled after death.
The ascertainment of death takes place in the chapel, rather than in the room where he died, and his body is immediately placed inside the coffin.
According to Archbishop Diego Ravelli, Master of Apostolic Ceremonies, the late Pope Francis had requested that the funeral rites be simplified and focused on expressing the faith of the Church in the Risen Body of Christ.
“The renewed rite,” said Archbishop Ravelli, “seeks to emphasise even more that the funeral of the Roman Pontiff is that of a pastor and disciple of Christ and not of a powerful person of this world.”
