133 Cardinals will gather at Sistine Chapel on May 7th to elect the next Pope.
Vatican Firefighters expanded the roof of the Sistine Chapel on May 2, setting up iconic chimneys that Cardinals College sends white smoke into the sky above St. Peter’s Square, and use to inform the world when a new Pope is elected.
On May 5th, all clergy and rapists set up to participate in the Conclave will be sworn in, including Secretariat and Swiss security guards, doctors and nurses, staff from technical, cleaning and translation services, secretaries from Cardinals University, and staff members who are responsible for helping Cardinals return and/or travel to the Maltese residence of Casa Santa.
The conclave will begin on May 7th. Here’s what you know.
Cardinals
The Cardinals receive their titles directly from the sitting Pope, mostly current or former bishops or archbishops. Cardinal Kevin Farrell, for example, served as bishop of Dallas before being called by Pope Francis to serve other issues. He was appointed to the Cardinal Camerlengo in 2019.
Pastor Alfredo Hernandez, president and president of the St. Vincent DePaul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach, Florida, said during the Epoch era there are several reasons why the Pope would choose to raise individuals into the role of cardinal. One is to honor religious men and his local churches, such as Cardinal Timothy Dolan, a major city archbishop in New York. Another reason is that the Pope believes that a person is trustworthy to serve as an advisor, or that he is worthy of choosing a successor to the Pope, or that he may become his next successor.
“It’s really men who are looking for the benefits of the church,” he said of Conclave, warning the “dangerous” desire to see events purely through an understanding of secular politics.
Voting is left to electors under the age of 80. According to the Vatican, 108 of them were appointed by Pope Francis and Pope Benedict XVI, and five remained.
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Pope Paul VI enacted rules under the age of 80 and limits on 120 electorals during his rule between 1963 and 1978. That limitation was maintained throughout the election of the Pope after him.
Francis chose to abolish the rules, increasing the number of cardinal elections to 135.
The youngest elector is 45-year-old Ukrainian-born Australian Mykola Byokok, and the oldest is Carlos Osoro Sierra, 79-year-old from Spain.
The average age of university voting members appears to be on the older edge, as 50 voting cardiacs were born in the 1940s, of which 13 years old were born, so the average age of university voting members seems to be on the older edge. The ages 13 were born in the 1950s, 31 were born in the 1960s, and six were born in the 1970s.
The Holy See See Press Office confirmed that 133 Cardinals were gathered for the Conclave, and the two were unable to attend due to health. This number makes it the most populous conclave in history and, in turn, the most globally diverse.
There is no more European vote majority
The Conclave will be the first in history where European Cardinals account for more than half of all voting institutions.
The European Cards remain the largest single group, consisting of 53 electors, while the other 80 under the age of 82 come from other parts of the world. 23 are from Asia, 18 from Africa, and 4 from Oceania.
For the first time, practicing Catholics in 15 more colonial and postcolonial countries is represented by native cardinals. It includes cardinal sichily Langlois from Haiti, John Libbat of Papua New Guinea, Sebastian Francis from Malaysia and William Sen Chie Goh of Singapore. But they also include Cardinals Anders Arbolius from Sweden, Jean-Claude Horelich from Luxembourg, Adalbert Martinez Flores from Paraguay, and Ladislav Nemet from Serbia.
This expression of Conclave elicited speculation that Pope Francis’ successor could come from somewhere beyond Europe and the Mediterranean.
This broad expression reflects the reality of the church where the Catholic population is located, and is a reality of themes that have changed over time, Hernandez said.
How long does the conclave last?
There is no set time as to how long the conclave will last. For many of these new cardiacs, this is the first time they’ve come together.
The congregations had already held several congregations after Pope Francis’ funeral, during which they had the opportunity to pray together and discuss issues regarding the churches of the world.
According to the Vatican, another recurring theme of the debate is “a church that lives in the world, not itself.”
There will be one vote on the first day, and four votes on each day that follows. Only one vote is required to generate at least two-thirds of a majority. The elected man must then accept the position and choose the name of the Pope.
Pope St. John Paul II was elected in the eighth vote on the third evening of the Conclave in 1978. Pope Benedict XVI was elected on the fourth vote on the second day of the Conclave in 2005, while Pope Francis was elected on the fifth vote on the second day of the Conclave in 2013.
No matter how long you take it, the winning white smoke will be released from the chapel chimney, accompanied by the protodeacon’s “Habemus Papam.” An introduction to the new pope people occurs on the same day immediately after the vote.
There was already speculation about who the next Pope would be, and internet gamblers have betted. However, Hernandez and his seminary have not made a bet, declaring that everything is an act of trust in God and the Church.
However, when asked what the next class of American priests wanted, the next successor to St. Peter, he said he wanted someone who focused on evangelism and the desire to serve and care for the poor and poor.
