How a Pope is Chosen: Inside the Vatican's Secret Process
How a Pope is Chosen: Inside the Vatican's Secret Process
Prepared by Fr. Ronald Rey Espartinez, SVD
The Pope is the spiritual leader of the Roman Catholic Church, considered the successor of Saint Peter. When a Pope dies or resigns, a new one is chosen in a centuries-old tradition called the conclave. This is a secretive meeting of the College of Cardinals held in the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City. The cardinals are literally locked in ("conclave" comes from the Latin cum clave, meaning “with a key”) until they elect a new pope by a two-thirds majority vote.
Show More
Voting is done on paper ballots, and after each vote, the ballots are burned. If no pope is elected, the smoke is black; when a new pope is chosen, the smoke turns white—signaling to the world, “Habemus Papam!” (“We have a Pope!”).
#popefrancis #conclave #vatican #vaticano #vaticancity #papafrancisco #election #cardinals #Howapopeischosen #electingpope #vaticanstate
