Death of Pope Francis: Why His Succession Proclaims to Be Very Tensile

DECRYPTAGE - Pope Francis died this Monday at the age of 88. Cardinal voters will have to debate the orientations infused by the sovereign pontiff. On at least four dossiers.

It is an exceptional Mass that the diocese of Marseilles organized to the Major in tribute to Pope Francis, who died in the morning on this Easter Monday. It was opened by a song written on a music by Haendel (1747), "To You the Glory", which is certainly Christian, but which is almost the [...]

Already immediately after the death of Pope Francis, speculation has begun as to who could follow him in office. 135 cardinals are entitled to vote in the conclave. In addition to the assessment of the suitability for the office, questions of church and power politics play the main roles: We continue Francis' course, or is the Church once again taking a more conservative path? Will it become a European or a cardinal of the "periphery"? Around a …

"Dear brothers and sisters, with deep pain I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis. At 7.35 a.m., the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the Father's house. His whole life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and his Church." Thus announced the Camerlengo, Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrel, the death of Jorge Mario Bergoglio, after twelve years in office. Although incomplete and frustrating for the most demanding, progress in tasks…

After the death of Francis, who died on this Easter Monday, Rome is boiling. The hour is on the balance of a reformer pontificate and a question is already on all lips: who will be the next pope and what about the upheavals introduced by Francis who wanted to revolutionize the Church?

Pope Francis died on Monday 21 April 2025 at the age of 88. The Pope's last two trips to France were in Corsica in December 2024 and in Marseilles in September 2023. A journey followed by the special envoy of the Dauphiné Libéré, Julien Estrangin, the latter remembers having approached Pope Francis. A displacement punctuated by strong political messages, a crowd bath and a celebration from the Velodrome stadium. Two days in Marseilles that ended…