Video shows ex-pope Benedict lying in state, not Pope Francis
reads the Indonesian-language caption of a TikTok video shared on April 24, 2025.
"Pope Francis has left us forever, but God's messages and teachings will always inspire us to go forward!" reads the clip's overlaid text.
Image
Screenshot of the false TikTok post, captured on April 25, 2025
The video emerged after Pope Francis died of a stroke, causing a coma and "irreversible" heart failure, according to his death certificate released by the Vatican on April 21 (archived link). The 88-year-old Catholic leader had spent five weeks in the hospital, where he nearly succumbed to double pneumonia.
The Argentine pontiff's plain wooden coffin -- a testament to a life of humility -- was transferred to Saint Peter's Basilica for three days of lying in state before his funeral on April 26 (archived here and here).
The same video was also in Portuguese, Spanish and .
"Goodbye Pope Francis, may you have peace with the Father in heaven," read a comment on one of the posts.
Another said: "I really admire the example he set and his modesty.. Ciao Pope. RIP."
But the video in fact shows former pope Benedict XVI lying in state in January 2023.
The logo of an American network that presents Catholic programming, can be seen in the upper-left corner of the circulating video (archived link).
A combination of led to the same footage uploaded by EWTN on their official Facebook page on January 2, 2023 (archived link).
The video's reads: "The mortal remains of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI were moved early Monday morning to St. Peter's Basilica, where the late pope is lying in state through Jan. 4. Thousands are entering the Vatican Basilica to pray and pay their respects to Benedict XVI."
Image
Screenshot comparison of the falsely shared video (left) and EWTN's video (right)
.
The official Facebook accounts of Vatican News and Catholic News Agency also shared the similar footage (archived here and here).
AFP has debunked other misinformation related to the death of Pope Francis here and here.
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