Pope Francis will be laid to rest with a funeral on Saturday, following weeks of health issues that resulted in him being hospitalized in a Rome hospital. Francis returned in late March, and appeared to be on the upswing. The Pope, who died at 88, made his final public appearance on Easter Sunday, at St. Peter’s Square to thousands.

Per Vatican News, Pope Francis' funeral mass will take place at 10 am local time on Saturday in St. Peter’s Square. His coffin will be carried to St. Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday, where he will lie in state until his funeral.

Francis, the first pope born in the Americas, passed away from a cerebral stroke and heart failure, the Vatican said. The details were noted in a death certificate released by the Vatican. The death certificate said that Pope Francis was also affected by the ”previous episode of acute respiratory failure in bilateral multimicrobial pneumonia, multiple bronchiectasis, arterial hypertension and type II diabetes” that had left him hospitalized for weeks. 

The next pope will be selected by the College of Cardinals, made up of the church’s most senior figures appointed by the pontiff. They will make their way to Rome if they are not already there. The word conclave comes from the Latin “cum clave,” meaning “with key,” denoting the closed-off process that it is. There are over 250 cardinals from more than 90 countries, though there are just 135 cardinal electors, as those over the age of 80 are excluded. About 110 cardinal electors were selected by Francis in the past decade. 

Once gathered, they meet in the Sistine Chapel—beneath Michelangelo’s iconic ceiling—to start the process of choosing a new pope. After a call of "extra omnes" clears the room of everyone except the electors and a few necessary officials, the doors are sealed. Cardinals then take an oath of strict confidentiality and are completely cut off from outside communication—no phones, no news, no mail. Authorities also sweep the chapel for surveillance devices before and during the voting.

A mass is held, after which deliberations and voting begin. Votes are taken each day, morning, and afternoon, until one candidate has a two-thirds majority. After every seven ballots, there is a day’s break for prayer. This process usually takes no longer than a week, as the longest conclave in recent history was five days, more than 100 years ago in 1922.

Any baptized male is eligible to be pope, though the last pope who was not a cardinal was Pope Urban VI in 1378, who was an archbishop. 

At the end of each voting session, ballots are burned. To signal the outcome, specific chemicals are added to the fire to aid in what’s probably the most well-known part of the selection process. Black smoke means no decision has been reached, while white smoke signals that a new pope has been chosen.

The man selected is asked whether he accepts the role and what papal name he wishes to adopt. Once he agrees, the other cardinals offer their allegiance. He is then taken to the nearby Room of Tears, where he changes into papal garments—white cassock, skull cap, and red shoes. Vatican tailors prepare three sizes of these vestments ahead of time, according to The Guardian.

Afterward, the senior cardinal appears on the main balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica to address the crowd gathered below. He announces: “Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum: Habemus papam” – “I announce to you a great joy: We have a pope.”