APRIL 22, 2025|
Photo – Pope Francis – Courtesy Wikipedia
In Rome, the funeral for Pope Francis will be held Saturday. Public viewing for the faithful will start on Wednesday. The funeral is set for 2 am in Wyoming on Saturday morning, which will be 10 am in Rome. In accordance with an action by President Donald Trump on Monday, Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon ordered both, the United States and state flags, to fly at half-staff immediately.
In the wake of the passing of Pope Francis on Easter Monday, the Catholic Church will begin the process of selecting the next Bishop of Rome, setting the future course of the Church and its 1.3 billion followers.
In the next 15 to 20 days, a conclave of the College of Cardinals will be convened within the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, where they will hold a secret ballot vote to elect the next Pontifex Maximus of the Church.
Francis, who exerted a heavy emphasis on social justice issues, including the environment, mass migration, and homosexuality, also had a significant impact on the makeup of the College of Cardinals.
Rather than selecting from large archdioceses, such as cities like Los Angeles and Milan, Pope Francis focused on selecting cardinals from the periphery of the church, particularly in Africa and Asia, with a focus on those with a “pastoral” background.
Before he passed on Easter Monday, Francis had selected approximately 80 percent of the cardinals who will be eligible to vote for the next Pope.
Any baptized Roman Catholic male is eligible to be Pope, but since 1378, only cardinals have been selected.
Roman Catholics are the second largest religion in Wyoming. Comprising about 14% of the population according to the Association of Religion Data Archives. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne oversees the Catholic community in the State, with Bishop Steven Biegler as the current Bishop. The diocese includes Saint Mary’s Catholic Cathedral in Cheyenne, which serves as the mother church for the diocese.
In the United States, the flags of the United States and the Wyoming State flag should be flown at half-staff until sunset on the day of interment. Once that date is determined, a reminder will be sent from the Governor’s office to return flags to full staff.
President Donald Trump announced on Monday that he and First Lady Melania Trump will attend the funeral of Pope Francis in Rome.
