Overview: Choosing the next pope

Cardinals from various countries will gather inside the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel in the coming days to choose the next pope – the next leader of the world’s 1.2-billion Roman Catholics, following the official resignation of Pope Benedict XVI on Feb. 28.

With the papal seat now vacant, the College of Cardinals began meetings — “general congregations” — on Monday to discuss issues facing the church and set a start date for the conclave to elect Benedict’s successor.

“I’d say we certainly won’t see a conclave beginning before March 11. That day is a possibility, as is March 15, which is the traditional 15-day period before the vacancy,” Neil MacCarthy, with the Archdiocese of Toronto, told 680News.

“There’s one school of thought that we need to move this along and get it going as quickly as possible because we don’t have a pope. The other train of thought is that we need to take our time. This pope may be the next pope for several decades so let’s not rush this.”

The transition period between the end of one papacy and the start of another is known as the “Sede vacante” or “vacant Seat.”

 

Benedict’s departure

Pope Benedict XVI, 85, made history on Feb. 28, becoming the first pontiff to step down in nearly 600 years. The last pope to do so was Pope Gregory XII in 1415.

Benedict was elected the 265th pope on April 19, 2005, following the death of his predecessor John Paul II on April 2 of that year. At age 78, Benedict was the oldest man in 275 years of the pontificate to become pope.

Benedict announced his resignation on Feb. 11 due to what he said was a “lack of strength of mind and body.” He said he’s “not abandoning the church” and will serve the church with the same dedication but in a way “more suitable to my age and my strength.”

Benedict said he will spend his remaining years in prayer and meditation in a secluded monastery located behind Vatican City’s ancient walls.

His papacy officially ended at 8 p.m. local time (2 p.m. ET) on Feb. 28. As the clock struck 8 p.m., bells tolled and the brass-studded wooden doors of Castel Gandolfo closed, marking the start of his final religious journey as a “simple pilgrim.”

At around 5 p.m. local time, Benedict left the Vatican by helicopter to the papal retreat at Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome. It was around the same time that he tweeted for the last time via @Pontifex: “Thank you for your love and support. May you always experience the joy that comes from putting Christ at the centre of your lives.”

Shortly thereafter, all of Benedict’s tweets were archived. The profile was also changed to read “Sede Vacante.”

He’ll now be referred to as “emeritus pope” and continue to wear a white cassock. He’ll also be called “Your Holiness.”

 

Historical precedent

Benedict became the first pope in 600 years to relinquish his pontificate — not since Pope Gregory XII, who stepped down in 1415 as part of a deal to end the Great Western Schism, a rift that threatened to split the church. At the time, the legitimacy of Gregory was in question due to duelling papal claimants. Since then, the tradition has been for popes to reign until death. That’s not the case this time around.

Although the Vatican says there is no issue with Benedict, now known as emeritus pope, living inside the Vatican, there were concerns others may different intentions and thus maintain allegiance to the outgoing pope.

However, Benedict took major steps to avoid any possible conflicts that may arise with an emeritus pope living alongside the new pontiff. Benedict pledged “unconditional reverence” and “obedience” to the new pope when he addressed his cardinals on the day of his official resignation.

Also, in his final legal document, cardinals will now have to make a public pledge of allegiance to Benedict’s successor during one of the new pope’s first masses. Previous rules indicated cardinals only had to do so privately in the Sistine Chapel immediately following the election.

 

Papal history

The papacy is steeped in history, dating back to St. Peter (32-67 AD) – one of Jesus Christ’s apostles — recognized by the Catholic Church as the first pope or “Bishop of Rome.”

The pope not only serves as leader of the Catholic Church, but is also ruler of the “Holy See” (Sancta Sedes in Latin), or the “Apostolic See” – the government of the Catholic Church – and head of Vatican City, a sovereign state within the city of Rome.

The longest papal election in Catholic Church history took place in the 13th century, following the death of Pope Clement IV. From Nov. 1268 to Sept. 1, 1271, cardinals met in a palace in Viterbo, a village in central Italy, to select the next pontiff. Due to bickering between the cardinals, village officials decided to lock them in until they chose the next pope — Pope Gregory X.

Although this is sometimes viewed as the first conclave, Pope Gregory X established official rules for future papal elections, decreeing that cardinals be locked in “cum clave” (Latin for “with a key”) until a new pope is selected.

Longest serving popes:
-Pius IX (1846–1878): 31 years
-John Paul II (1978–2005): 26 years

Shortest serving popes:
-Urban VII (15–27 September 1590): died after 13 days
-Boniface VI (April 896): dies after 16 days

 

Choosing the next pope

Of the 207 cardinals worldwide, only 115 out of 117 cardinals – those under the age of 80 — are eligible to participate in the conclave. Two cardinals have opted out of the conclave, one from Great Britain and one from Indonesia.

As per conclave rules, cardinals can only select a new pope 15-20 days after the papal seat becomes vacant. However, if the conclave were to start on March 15, a new pontiff would have to be chosen by Sunday, March 17, because Holy Week starts on March 24, culminating with Easter Sunday on March 24. The new pope would need sufficient time to prepare for the most sacred week on the Christian calendar.

For example, following the funeral of Pope John Paul II on April 8, 2005, the conclave began on April 18 and Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger — now emeritus pope — was elected the next day, and the papal inauguration was held on April 24. All this took place within a week.

This time around, to deal with the tight time-frame, Benedict made some changes to the 1996 Vatican law on Feb. 25, which would allow the College of Cardinals to move the start date earlier if all of the cardinals arrive in Rome before March 15.

In terms of who could be the next pope, the College of Cardinals could look beyond Europe to Latin America, which is home to 40 per cent of the world’s Catholics. Brazilian Cardinal Odilo Pedro Scherer is being viewed as the front-runner to succeed Benedict.

Three Canadian cardinals are participating in the conclave: Quebec Cardinal Marc Ouellet, who is also considered a possible front-runner, Toronto Cardinal Thomas Collins, and Montreal Cardinal Jean-Claude Turcotte.

Ouellet currently serves as “perfect of the congregation for bishops” and “president of the pontifical commission for Latin America” at the Vatican.

“It is exciting to have a Canadian mention as a potential pope. Cardinal Ouellet has held positions in numerous places around the world,” the Archdiocese of Toronto’s Neil MacCarthy said. “He’s spent time in North America, Latin America, South America, and most recently, very high-profile positions at the Vatican.”

 

Conclave process

Once the College of Cardinals pick a date for the papal election, cardinals in the conclave will file into the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel to begin the election process.

Before the conclave starts, the cardinals swear an oath of secrecy and are forbidden to communicate with the outside world. Cardinals who fail to obey this rule can be subject to severe repercussions by the church.

Cardinals cast one ballot on the first day, followed by two in the subsequent morning and evening voting sessions until one cardinal has two-thirds majority. If none of the cardinals receive a majority, the ballots are burned and voting starts again.

Although the conclave is shrouded in secrecy, the outside world can learn whether or not a new pope has been chosen by seeing smoke billowing from the Sistine Chapel’s chimney. Black smoke indicates no pope elected, while white smoke means there’s a new pontiff.

 

Priorities for next pope

Sexual abuse scandals: Although Benedict apologized for the Catholic Church’s role in protecting abusers, victims say not enough has been done to punish those who aided in the abuse cover up.

Reforming Roman Curia: As the administrative arm of the Holy See, critics say the Curia is riddled with bureaucracy, dysfunction, mismanagement, corruption, and lack of transparency.

Vatileaks: During his papacy, Benedict’s butler leaked papal documents to a journalist. The documents revealed corruption and allegations of a gay plot at the highest levels of the Catholic Church.

Equality: Previous popes have adhered to the Catholic Church’s teachings on the traditional definition of marriage and family. Women are not allowed to enter the clergy.

–With files from The Associated Press