One day after the passing of Pope Francis at age 88, the Vatican has released his spiritual testament — a deeply personal document penned in 2022 that outlines his humble final wishes, including how and where his body should be buried.

The Roman Catholic Church’s first Latin American pontiff died on Easter Monday, April 21, 2025, following a stroke and heart failure, less than a month after being hospitalized with double pneumonia.

Despite appearing frail, he made a final public appearance at Easter Mass the day before his death.

In his spiritual testament, dated June 29, 2022 — the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul — the pontiff articulated five specific instructions regarding his burial.

The document underscores Pope Francis’ hallmark simplicity and enduring devotion to the Virgin Mary.

Here are the five burial wishes he laid out:

1. A Final Resting Place at St. Mary Major, Not St. Peter’s

Breaking from the long-standing tradition of papal burials in the Vatican Grottoes beneath St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Francis requested to be interred at the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major — a site he frequently visited before and after his apostolic missions.

“As I sense the approaching twilight of my earthly life… I wish to set out my final wishes solely regarding the place of my burial,” he wrote, citing his life-long Marian devotion as the reason for his choice.

While the majority of Popes have been laid to rest in the Vatican Grottoes beneath St. Peter’s Basilica—a sacred space that houses the tombs of over 90 pontiffs, including St. John Paul II, Paul VI, and Benedict XVI—Francis requested a different final resting place that was sacred to him.

He chose the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major, a site deeply significant to him personally and spiritually.

Throughout his life—as both priest and bishop—Francis consistently placed his trust in the Blessed Virgin Mary.

His devotion to her shaped much of his ministry, and it became a ritual for him to stop and pray at Saint Mary Major before and after every apostolic journey.

Honoring that lifelong devotion, the Pope expressed his wish to be buried in the historic Marian sanctuary—resting in the presence of the one to whom he had long entrusted his mission, as he awaited the resurrection.

2. A Modest Grave Between Two Chapels

Francis asked that his tomb be “in the ground,” located in a burial niche between the Pauline Chapel and the Sforza Chapel, adjacent to the revered image of the Salus Populi Romani — an icon of the Virgin Mary he often prayed before.

3. A Simple Inscription: “Franciscus”

Known for rejecting grandeur throughout his papacy, Pope Francis wished for no elaborate headstone, no gilded inscription, only the name he chose as pontiff: “Franciscus.”

“The tomb should be in the ground; simple, without particular ornamentation, bearing only the inscription: Franciscus,” his will reads.

4. No Burden to the Church: Burial Costs Already Covered

Reflecting his aversion to excess, the Pope noted that a benefactor had already provided for the burial costs, with arrangements entrusted to Cardinal Rolandas Makrickas, the Extraordinary Commissioner of the Liberian Basilica.

5. An Offering of Suffering and a Prayer for Peace

In the final lines of his testament, Pope Francis offered his physical decline and end-of-life suffering to God as a sacrifice for world peace and unity.

“The suffering that has marked the final part of my life, I offer to the Lord, for peace in the world and for fraternity among peoples,” he wrote, expressing gratitude for those who “have loved me and continue to pray for me.”

A Legacy of Humility

The Vatican confirmed that the Pope’s coffin will be transferred to St. Mary Major Basilica for private prayer, followed by public viewing.

The funeral is expected to take place later this week, after cardinals convene to determine the official date.

Even in death, Pope Francis — who lived in a Vatican guesthouse and drove a modest Fiat — remained true to the simplicity and compassion that defined his transformative papacy.

For continued coverage of Pope Francis’ funeral rites and succession process, follow CNN’s special reports from Rome.