For these next days of waiting, first and foremost for the cardinals in conclave and then also for all of us: Come, Holy Spirit, bringing wisdom, discernment and patience.
Vatican
Posted inFaith, Podcasts
The cardinals are in conclave. What happens next?
What we know about the protocols being followed by the cardinals in conclave—and what happens next
Posted inFaith, News
Cardinal Re’s pre-conclave homily: ‘Love is the only force capable of changing the world.’
Some five hours after the opening Mass, the cardinals were to process into the Sistine Chapel, swear an oath to uphold the conclave rules, listen to a final reflection and—if they chose to do so—conduct the first ballot.
Posted inFaith, News Analysis
The rise of religious orders among the conclave’s cardinal electors
Perhaps a revealing question is whether the church will continue the radical novelty Francis brought as a pope from a religious order—and whether this is the continuity needed now.
Posted inFaith, Podcasts
Where the cardinals stand one day before the conclave
Who are the frontrunners entering the conclave, and how the voting could quickly confirm papabile lists or pivot to an unexpected candidate
Posted inConclave Diary, Faith
A day before the conclave, the field is wide open
The conclave opens tomorrow, and the energy around the Holy See Press Office is alarmingly calm.
Posted inDispatches, Faith
They came to Rome for vacation. Then the pope died.
The chair of Peter may be empty, but the Vatican is still full.
Posted inExplainer, Faith
The history of the Sistine Chapel—where cardinals will choose the next pope
The papal conclave will take place as usual in the hallowed space of the Sistine Chapel. What is the history of this famous church and its artistic treasures?
Posted inConclave Diary, Faith
What name will the next pope take—and what will it mean?
The choice of a papal name is said to be the new pope’s first important decision.
Posted inFaith, News
Ahead of the conclave, Vatican staff must vow secrecy under threat of excommunication
In Pope John Paul II’s rules for the conclave, excommunication was always a possibility, but Pope Benedict XVI made it explicit, saying they must observe “absolute and perpetual secrecy.”