Vatican expert explains

Great concern: what will happen if the Pope dies

Lying in state in St. Peter's Basilica, the world bids farewell to the Pope. Here is the funeral service of Pope Benedict XVI.

(Bild: laPresse / EXPA / picturedesk.com)

Concern about Pope Francis (88) is growing. The health updates from the Vatican are hardly reassuring. A papal expert revealed to the "Krone" newspaper what happens when the head of the Catholic Church passes away and what strange rites and processes this sets in motion. 

There is no doubt about it: when the Vicar of Christ dies on earth in this day and age, it is a religious, political and media event in a class of its own. It was no different in the past, says René Schlott from the Center for Contemporary History in Potsdam in an interview with Krone. The historian wrote his doctorate on the subject of "The death of the Pope as a media event" and is considered a proven Vatican expert.