It was the evening of the 13th of March 2013 when St. Peter’s Square erupted in cheers after the white smoke emerged from the Sistine Chapel. A new Pope had been announced.
We are now preparing to relive this moment, as we are just hours away from the next conclave following the passing of Pope Francis. The cardinals have arrived in Rome, prepared to cast their first votes on who will be the next pope. But how is this all going to play out? What events or discussions are expected to take place inside the Sistine Chapel? Here are the key factors for understanding how the conclave works and who decides who will be the next pope.
The Conclave: Choosing who will be the next pope
Conclave actually comes from the Latin cum clave which means ‘with a key’, making reference to the cardinals being locked in the Sistine Chapel for the holy election. The process of electing a pope dates back nearly two millennia, beginning with the establishment of the College of Cardinals in 1059.
However, it wasn’t until 1274 when Gregory X introduced reforms that gave shape to the conclave we know today. This reform was implemented in response to political interference by European monarchs, which was prevalent at the time.
Who is taking part?
The conclave will consist of the 133 cardinals who are eligible to vote out of the 252 current cardinals worldwide. The reason only 1/3 can vote is that they must be under 80 to be eligible. Pope Paul VI actually introduced this in 1970. Some say it is out of mercy, so they don’t have to be burdened with such a weighty decision in their old age; however, there are rumours that some senior cardinals can’t be trusted to not leak information to the press.
There are 52 cardinals from Europe, 23 from Asia, 20 from North America, 17 from both Africa and South America, and four from Oceania. The country with the most cardinals is Italy, with 17, followed by the United States with 10 and Brazil with seven. The UK has three cardinals eligible to vote.
Their role is to decide on who will be the next pope.
From swearing secrets to strict diets
Each cardinal has sworn to complete secrecy as they vow to never divulge what takes place inside the conclave, and if any of them do so, they can face excommunication. Tomorrow morning, the cardinals will be arriving at the Vatican, where they will have to hand in their phones, tablets, and smart watches and be completely sealed off from the outside world. They can’t even open the windows. In fact, even the cardinals food will be monitored to prevent secret messaging.
So, who is the Ralph Fiennes of this conclave? His name is Cardinal Kevin Farrell, and he was the one who announced the passing of Pope Francis. He is in charge of running the meetings and organising this conclave to ensure a fair process when deciding who will be the next pope.
Cardinals must remain inside until a pope is elected and will spend nights in the Vatican guesthouse, Santa Marta. The first voting session starts imminently after all cardinals are settled and ready.
Voting after voting
When the cardinals arrive at the Sistine Chapel, Extra Omnes will be declared, meaning everyone else out. The cardinals can’t speak inside the Sistine Chapel; they can only write down their vote. One candidate that reaches a two-thirds majority will be anointed Pope.
Each cardinal is allocated to a seat where they will find a pen and a pile of ballots with the words Eligo in summum pontificem, meaning I elect as supreme pontiff. On these ballots, each cardinal will write down the name of the man they chose to be pope.
After, they stand up, folding the paper in two, walking towards the altar of the Sistine Chapel where a bronze urn stands. Before casting the ballot to the urn, they will take another oath in Latin: Estor Christum Dominum, qui me iudicaturus est, me eum eligere, quem secundum Deum iudico eligi debere. Which means ‘I call as my witness Christ the Lord, who is to judge me, and I choose him whom according to God I judge ought to be elected’.
Each day, there should be two votes in the morning and two in the afternoon. Once the ballots are counted and recounted, they will be thread into a bundle using a needle, puncturing the word “eligo” along the way. The papers are incinerated in a burner. If the process yields no decision, chemicals are added to turn the smoke black. However, once the cardinals have made their decision, the smoke turns white and the bells are rung, signalling that a decision has been made on who will be the next pope.
The voting can last from days to years. In fact, the longest conclave occurred in the 13th century and lasted two years and nine months, during which three cardinals passed away. However, there is no need to worry, as the most recent conclaves have only lasted two to three days. Experts, however, are divided as this conclave has been labeled the most unpredictable in modern Catholic history. The answer to who will be the next pope remains illusive.
Featured image via Fabrizio Maffei/Shutterstock.
