Pope Francis’ unexpected death has sent shockwaves through the world, and now questions are surfacing about the timeline of his final moments.
Ahead of his death, Francis had been dealing with multiple health problems in recent months, including a February hospitalization for double pneumonia and bronchitis.
Now, new documents have confirmed his cause of death.
TMZ has learned the 87-year-old pontiff died early Monday morning from a stroke and irreversible heart failure, according to his official death certificate released by the Vatican.
Even more eyebrow-raising? The same certificate confirms Francis had been in a coma before his death. That detail is raising some confusion, considering he was just seen the day before greeting U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance at the Vatican on Easter Sunday.
The Vatican hasn’t addressed the timeline discrepancy.
As The Blast reported, Pope Francis stepped out onto the gallery of St. Peter’s Basilica to greet the crowd after Easter Mass.
During the appearance, the Pope delivered a powerful message focused on unity, freedom, and peace. While an aide read most of his Easter remarks, the message was clear. “There can be no peace without freedom of religion, freedom of thought, freedom of expression.”
The pontiff used his final blessing to address global unrest, highlighting the devastating violence in Gaza, which he described as a “deplorable humanitarian situation.” Reflecting on several ongoing world conflicts, he shared a somber thought, “What a great thirst for death, for killing we see in many conflicts raging in different parts of the world.”