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?

For the Fourth Sunday of Easter in Year C, John Connell reflects on the Gospel’s message of Jesus as a shepherd, who knows his sheep intimately and cares for them with great love.

Inside the quirky procedures and protocols of the secretive conclave, with Thomas Reese, S.J.

“I become agitated when they say it’s time for an American, it’s time for an African, it’s time for a South Islander. I think that is so stupid. It’s time for the successor of Peter for 2025. The priority is evangelization.”

Whoever is elected as the next pope, one thing is certain: The church does not belong to him.

The role of the pope is in a process of conversion from worldly monarch to world’s priest.