EXCLUSIVE British cardinal reveals Pope Leo's reaction upon being elected and suggests he 'won't be afraid of tyrants' after notoriously secretive papal conclave
Cardinal Vincent Nichols, 79, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales, was one of 133 cardinals involved in the Conclave and described how 'every single step was meticulously followed'.
On Wednesday a crowd of 45,000 had waited patiently for the first sign of smoke from the Sistine Chapel chimney which had been due at 7pm but instead it wafted black to show no Pope had been elected more than two hours late.
Liverpool born Cardinal Nichols described the experience as 'remarkable' and revealed the smoke was late because papal priest Raniero Cantalamessa, 91, had over run his sermon by almost an hour.
He said: 'I think it's well known that Fr Cantalamessa gave a very long talk…it must have been an hour or more.
'One person said it was his valedictory address, and it was splendid stuff.
'It was suggested that it would be half an hour at the most, but it went on a lot longer. Patience is a good virtue, and it can't be easily demonstrated unless you are doing it.'
Revealing the details of how the Conclave worked Cardinal Nichols said: 'There was a remarkable sense of fraternity, with people from all over the world.
For Cardinal Nichols, who is the Archbishop of Westminster, it was also his first Conclave and he just made the 80 years old cut off limit
'There was no distraction from mobile phones and there was a great spirit among the group of us.
'It was a time of great patience because we followed every single step meticulously and that took time, taking the other took a long time and the process of voting also took a long time.'
For Cardinal Nichols, who is the Archbishop of Westminster, it was also his first Conclave, and he just made the 80 years old cut off limit.
And in an intriguing comment, speaking about a former Pope Leo, Cardinal Nichols said: 'In 452 AD Leo turned back Attila the Hun on the edge of the city of Rome, so he won't be afraid of tyrants.'
When asked whether he was referring to President Donald Trump, Cardinal Nichols replied: 'You might hear that, I didn't say it.'
He went on: 'It was a very rapid decision, just four votes, and I think that's because Pope Francis left a College of Cardinals that shared his vision and spirit to be a missionary church.
'I would say Pope Leo is a citizen of the world, and once we reflected, it was pretty clear that here was a man who as bringing the right depth to the church and experience.
'There was actually quite a bit of me that didn't want to leave because it was such a spiritual experience in there and I will treasure it deeply.
'He is very calm, clear in his mind decisive and I've seen him resolve difficulties that didn't leave enemies behind, and he can pull people together.'
Describing the moment the former cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was asked if he accepted being named Pope, Cardinal Nichols said:' He took it very matter of factly, there was no real emotion. He took it all in his stride.
'There was a real sense of elation when he accepted the position of Pope. I was standing just a few feet away as he spoke and he was so very calm.'
Then giving his first reaction to his beloved Liverpool winning the Premier League, he told the Mail: 'That was just as ecstatic.'
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