Posted on 04/02/2005 12:14:34 PM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach
VATICAN CITY (AP) -
0402pope From every corner of the world, the red-robed "princes" of the Roman Catholic Church headed toward the Vatican on Saturday to be near Pope John Paul II and prepare for the secret duty of gathering in the Sistine Chapel to elect the next pontiff.
It's a process steeped in centuries-old rituals and arcane traditions such as precise rules for how to bind together the tallied papal ballots with a needle and thread. But there are also modern forces at play - including stronger voices from outside Europe among the College of Cardinals that could shape the outcome of the conclave.
"This pope has so broadened the outreach and meaning of the papacy," said Jo Renee Formicola, a professor at Seton Hall University in South Orange, N.J., who has studied Vatican trends. "It's clear the cardinals will have to pay attention to this."
It's the nature of their role. The main task of a cardinal, a title granted by the pope, is the papal selection. Privately, they always are assessing the constantly reshuffled list of "papabile," the Italian word for likely papal candidates.
The Roman Catholic's most visible trend is its growing strength outside Europe - and this is reflected in the very makeup of the next conclave, improving the prospects of Latin American or African candidates such as Cardinal Francis Arinze, a Vatican-based Nigerian, or Brazilian Cardinal Claudio Hummes.
Asia, Africa and Latin American account for 44 of the cardinals under 80 years old - the condition for participating in the conclave and voting for the pope - compared with 58 from Europe. The United States, which could play an important swing role, has 11 cardinals among the 117 papal electors - the largest group that would ever decide on the next pontiff.
It's almost certain the next pope will be among them: although technically the cardinals can select any baptized male Roman Catholic, the last time they looked outside their elite group was 1378.
Many cardinals have been living here working in Vatican posts. Others cut short trips or canceled plans and began heading to Rome.
Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Vatican's commission for Christian unity, interrupted a visit to Bulgaria. Belgium's Cardinal Godfried Danneels quickly left China. Four American cardinals were in Rome. The other seven U.S. papal electors were making plans to come if John Paul's death is announced.
The papal electors begin daily pre-conclave meetings immediately after the pope's death. They swear fidelity to the codes of secrecy, at the implicit risk of excommunication. All the cardinals then come together in public for the papal funeral Mass, which will be lead by the dean of the College of Cardinals. The others will take their places around the papal coffin in order of seniority.
The electors next assemble - no later than two weeks after the funeral, but no sooner than nine days after - to pick a successor to lead the world's 1.2 billion Catholics.
Here, with the electors sequestered behind the Vatican walls, begins a scene fundamentally unchanged since cardinals were given sole papal selection authority nearly 1,000 years ago.
The aura of John Paul II will be strong.
He amended conclave rules in 1996 with his document "Universi Dominici Gregis," or "Shepherd of the Lord's Whole Flock," which bolstered and updated the conclave rules. Each cardinal will place his hand on the Gospels for an oath pledging loyalty to the next pope and to promising never to reveal what occurred in the chamber.
According to procedures outlined by the Vatican, the cardinals will first assemble in the Pauline Chapel, decorated with Michelangelo frescoes to Saints Peter and Paul, and sing a Latin hymn, "Veni Creator," which seeks guidance from the Holy Spirit. Then they move into the Sistine Chapel, under Michelangelo's majestic "The Last Judgment."
It will be a new experience for nearly all the papal electors. Only a handful took part in the 1978 election of the first Polish-born pontiff, which took eight ballots over two days. The cardinals 80 or older cannot attend.
Aides and others accompany the cardinals into the chapel. A meditation is offered on the qualities needed for the next pope and the challenges ahead for the church.
"Extra omnes," an official then cries - Latin for "all out," except the cardinals.
And those left behind cannot leave until a pope is selected unless for a medical emergency. In that case, special arrangements are made for the cardinal to vote from his sickbed.
In the past, makeshift quarters were created in and around the Sistine Chapel. Cardinals accustomed to first-class luxury were forced to sleep in corners of salons or in stairwells. This time, the cardinals will be staying at the US$20 million Domus Santae Marthae, a hotel-style site within the Vatican with 108 suites and 23 single rooms, all with baths. The rooms are assigned by lot during a conclave.
But one thing will not change: the attempt to block all outside influences. There is no television, publications, telephone access or anything else that could be used to sway cardinals. Technicians will sweep the area for any bugs or evidence of high-powered eavesdropping devices being aimed from outside the Vatican walls. Windows are closed and curtains drawn.
In 1243, the Senate and people of Rome broke a year-and-a-half deadlock by locking the cardinals up until they finally elected a new pope. In 1271, the cardinals were not only locked up, but were put on a diet of bread and water until they could agree.
The pope chosen in 1271, Gregory X, formalized these drastic measures as conclaves. Despite his efforts, 29 subsequent conclaves lasted more than a month. But no conclave since 1831 has lasted more than four days.
Initially, a two-thirds majority is needed. But John Paul amended the rules to allow for a simple majority after a three rounds of balloting and pauses.
Even the voting is rich in ritual. Each cardinal approaches the altar in the Sistine Chapel, kneels and prays and uses a large plate to slide his ballot into a chalice. Three cardinals, given the role of "scrutineers," count the ballots: the first two remove and tally the votes; the third announces the names and then passes a needle through the first word printed on the ballots, "Eligo in summen pontificem," or I elect as Supreme Pontiff.
The ballots are tied together by string and burned along with a special chemical. Black smoke signifies the voting will continue. White smoke means a new pope has been elected.
The new pope must utter the word "Accepto," or I accept, to formally seal the selection.
Within hours, a senior cardinal will appear at the central window in St. Peter's Basilica. A brief announcement will end with "Habemus papam" - "We have a pope."
The new pontiff will then look out over St. Peter's Square.
--
Rome's Next Choice? [TIME: "Arch-Conservative" Ratzinger is top Papabile]
Lent in the Vatican: The Pope, the Curia, and the Conclave ( Who's On First )
WILL INDIAN PONTIFF SUCCEED POPE?
POPE: 117 CARDINALS ON STANDBY FOR CONCLAVE
Papal Transition (what happens between one pope and the next)
Vatican Bracing for Papal Succession
When Sad Day Comes, Eyes of World Will Be on Papal Selection [How next Pope will be chosen]
Mahony Flies To Rome For Solemnities, Conclave (Cardinal from Los Angeles to Visit Vatican)
I confess I hadn't heard of Karol Woytila until he was elected Pope. There may be some wonderful candidate out there whom none of us have ever heard of. But of the candidates sometimes mentioned, my preference is for Cardinal Francis Arinze. What a great leader he would be!
I find myself hoping that they lose Mahony's luggage and he has to spent the next three weeks chasing it all over the planet and thereby misses the Conclave.
Okay, thanks...sometimes it's hard to tell online. :)
Ratzinger would be wonderful. But I fear he may have too many enemies.
Dan Brown is very successful among ignorant and half-educated phonies. His is pulp fiction, literary McDonald's for lazy bums who just cannot force themselves to learn something hard, i.e. proper way. So they swallow his quite roughly hasted together bestsellers hook, lead and sinker.
To be jealous of his success can his fellow scribbler. An avid reader knows the real value of Dan Brown and the likes.
He knew enough to plagiarize someone else.
Thanks for the Ping.
I wish for Ukrainian Cardinal Patriarch Lubomyr Husar, Byzantine Catholic who would be worthy follower of JP II. He represents the Eastern Catholics who were prosecuted, tortured by the Communism and knows how to bring the people from the darkness of evil. (He probably likes olives too.)
Pray for him!
I'm of the "crowd" that says Brown knows NOTHING of what he talks about. Da Vinci is full of falsehoods, lies, and misperceptions.
Hmmmm. You attack Brown's Da Vinci Code...the relevant book here is Angels & Demons...i.e. the book that deals with the conclave and papal succession.
No. It started as a semi-sarcastic post (#4)...the responses to it were serious. Brown, like JK Rowling, brings out the worst in some Christians who believe that both authors are attacking them.
bttt
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