With the passing of Pope Francis, who presided over the Roman Catholic Church and its 1.4 billion followers for 12 years, everyone wants to know how the Vatican is going to choose the next follow up.
The decision for the next Pope is made through a long process called The Conclave, which is a an election conducted in secrecy behind the locked doors of the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel. Conclaves are usually only held when the Pope dies or retires.
Soon, the college of Cardinals – the churches senior members and the acting head of the church – will control the church until a new Pope is elected. The Cardinals will convene to choose the new pontiff.
Only those under 80 are eligible to vote; of the churches 252 cardinals, only 135 will serve as electors, according to the Vatican. Pope Francis was the 266th pope in the Roman Catholic Church’s almost 2000 year history, the first pope being St. Peter.
The Conclave, usually held 15 to 20 days after the pope’s death, will start May 7. There’s no set time limit for the conclave; the longest conclave in modern times being the one that took place in 1903, when Pope Pius X was chosen after five days.
The last conclave was a little more than a day, around 28 hours. The conclave is a respected and old tradition. Before it begins, the members of the College of Cardinals will first celebrate Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica before gathering in the Sistine Chapel.
Until a successor is chosen, they will stay locked behind the chapel’s doors. While originally, the isolation was initially intended to shield the college from the influence of Roman leaders and powerful families, it’s now used to shield the college from the pressures of media.
The Cardinals are also given no access to televisions, phones, email, or any other form of public contact and are always sworn to secrecy, though some details have inevitably squirmed through the chapel walls over the years.
Up to four secret ballots are conducted daily. Electors write votes on slips of papers and the Pope is chosen when he garners two-thirds of the votes.
Meanwhile, outside the Chapel in St. Peter’s Square, thousands of people will gather in prayer while waiting for the verdict. Batches of paper slips representing indecisive votes are burned using chemicals that produce black smoke from the chapel chimney, the public will know the new pope has been chosen when they see white smoke coming from the chimney.
Eventually the words “Habemus Papam” — “We have a pope” will sound from the balcony and the newest pope will make debut.
