Posted on 04/01/2005 9:09:48 AM PST by BunnySlippers
FACTBOX- What Happens After A Pope Dies?
VATICAN CITY, April 1 (Reuters) - With Pope John Paul gravely ill, the Roman Catholic Church is preparing for the elaborate rituals that mark the end of one papacy and the start of the next.
Here is a guide to what is due to happen when the Pope dies:
** Once a pope dies, his camerlengo (chamberlain) officially confirms his death, seals his private apartment and prepares the funeral and the conclave to elect a successor.
** The camerlengo and three elected cardinal assistants decide when the pope's body is to be taken into St. Peter's Basilica for public viewing. They also make sure the Pope's "Fisherman's Ring" and his lead seal are broken so they cannot be used by anyone else. No autopsy is performed.
** Funeral rites last 9 days, with the date of the funeral and burial to be decided by the cardinals between the fourth and sixth day after his death. Popes are laid to rest in the crypt underneath St. Peter's Basilica. They are traditionally buried in a casket of cypress wood which is sealed inside a larger lead casket and then covered with an outer pine box.
** The College of Cardinals oversees day-to-day business during the interregnum. Their power is limited and much of the central Church administration grinds to a halt.
** The conclave to elect a new pope starts in the Vatican's Sistine Chapel between 15 and 20 days after the death. The cardinals, who are confined to the Vatican for the duration of the conclave, decide the exact day. For the first time, they will not live in the Chapel or nearby rooms in the Vatican Museum, but in a new residence on Vatican grounds.
** 120 cardinals under the age of 80 are eligible to vote. They need a majority of at least two-thirds plus one to elect him. When the conclave has elected a pope, he is asked if he accepts and which name he wishes to take. Once this is done, he dons papal vestments -- tailors keep several sizes ready -- and sits on a throne in the Sistine Chapel to receive the other cardinals who file up to pay homage and pledge obedience.
** The world will know a pope has been elected when an official burns the paper ballots with special chemicals to make white smoke pour out of the Chapel's chimney. They use other chemicals to make black smoke indicating an inconclusive vote.
** Soon afterwards, the dean of the College of Cardinals steps on to the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica to announce to the crowds in the square "Habemus Papam" ("We have a Pope"). The new pope then appears in his papal robes and gives the crowd his blessing.
((Rome newsroom; Reuters Messaging))
I know nothing of this man but seeing he is from Syria makes me think of how JPII came from "the belly of the beast" in Communist Poland. An appointment of a Pope from a Moslem country would be much the same thing.
That is Cardinal Ratzinger. He is indeed a leading contendor.
(Denny Crane: "Sometimes you can only look for answers from God and failing that... and Fox News".)
She'd ask for a recount.
(Denny Crane: "Sometimes you can only look for answers from God and failing that... and Fox News".)
I would be extrmely shocked if the next Pope were an Italian. The elevation of JPII was a sign of extending the office to people from all nations. I would not be at all surprised if there were a strong move by non-Europeans to ensure that one of their own was elevated.
What is the name of the Pope between John XXIII and the current Pope?
I agree. They seem to be bent on a Third World Pope.
Many years ago I heard that there are only a few spaces left in the papal crypt. (I forget the exact number.) The story was that after the last space is filled the Antichrist will appear.
Paul VI (1963-78)
John Paul I (1978)
John Paul II (1978—)
There were two Popes...Pope Paul VI, then the ill-fated Jean-Paul I whose reign lasted only 33 days. Mighty suspicious I might add.
Assasination and conspiracy coverup bigger than JFK have been assumed by most people. Any new info?
The only info on JPI is that there really is no info so people just make it up.
Thank you. My recollection is correct that John Paul took his predecessor's name.
The prophecies of Saint Malachy, a Medieval Irish saint state that there will be 2 Popes after JPII . The next Pope, states Malachy, will come from the Benedictine order.
http://www.bibleprobe.com/last10popes.htm
This might be a reference to Cardinal Lustiger of France, who was also born a Jew.
I see three possibilities:
1) It will be someone who has been already handpicked by JPII from his own inner circle, who are mostly members of Opus Dei, of which the Pope is the Patron.
2) It will be Cardinal Lustiger who is 78 years old.
3) It will be a Cardinal from a 3rd world country, an African in which case IMO the Church can kiss Europe byebye.
No new info ... but the Vatican is a strange place. Things go on there that no one can fathom, I suspect.
Your observations are QUITE interesting.
(Denny Crane: "Sometimes you can only look for answers from God and failing that... and Fox News".)
Cardinal
1. Paul Augustin Cardinal Mayer OSB
Archbishops
2. Rembert George Weakland OSB
3. Daniel William Kucera OSB
4. Daniel Mark Buechlein OSB
5. Jerome George Hanus OSB
6. Francesco Pio Tamburrino OSB
The Liberal inhabitants of Europe have been kissing the Church bye bye for years. Most Churches in Euro-peon land are nearly empty on Sunday with the exception of the elderly. The future of the Church is in Asia & Africa, where it is growing, not in the dying continent that is Europe.
Besides the TRULY devout are not so racist as to leave the Church because of the color of the popes skin. Anyone who attempts to racialize the Church should be excommunicated. It isn't a "white man's Church" or a "black man's Church."
Cardinal Lustiger is a Benedictine.
The German Cardinal is as well, I believe
Doesn't the next Pope have to be a Cardinal, not an Archbishop?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.