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Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
A conclave like no other: How papal pick gathering is different this year
The conclave that begins May 7 to pick a successor to Pope Francis will feature many long-established rituals, as befits a church that has been around for nearly 2,000 years. Cardinal electors will be sequestered from the outside world until a new pope is chosen. Every person involved – including support staff – will be required to take an oath of secrecy. Smoke from the Sistine Chapel chimney – black for no, white for yes – will announce whether a decision has been made. Within all those traditions that go back centuries, some new developments have emerged. Though Francis didn't make any major changes to the conclave itself, his outreach to what he called "the peripheries" left an imprint that will be felt in the upcoming gathering to elect his replacement. Here are some ways this conclave is different: The highest number of cardinal electors in any conclave Pope Paul VI set a rule in 1975 limiting the number of cardinal electors to 120, a norm that wasn't strictly adhered to in the College of Cardinals meetings known as consistories. However, this is the first time a conclave has gone over the 120 mark, and not just by a couple. Of the 252 current cardinals, 135 are under 80 and eligible to vote, though Antonio Cañizares of Spain and John Njue of Kenya have said they won't attend for health reasons. That leaves 133 voters, and a record 108 of them were appointed by Francis, more than 80%. That doesn't mean a progressive that follows in his footsteps will get the nod − many of the new cardinals hardly know each other and may not share his views − but it likely eliminates a hardcore conservative. A two-thirds majority is required. The most diverse conclave For the first time in memory, Europeans make up less than 50% of the voting cardinals, coming in at 47%. The trend in that direction was set in motion decades ago, but the advances of other regions stand out more than ever. In an unprecedented distribution, representatives from Latin America (18%), Asia and the Pacific (16%) and Africa and the Middle East (14%) all make up at least 14% of the voting cardinals at the conclave. That's the same percentage of those from Italy, the formerly dominant presence at these events. The Asian and African contingents made the biggest leaps since the 2013 conclave that elected Francis, no coincidence considering his outreach to those continents. Cardinals attend a mourning Mass for Pope Francis on the fifth day of Novendiali (nine days of mourning after the pope's funeral) at St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on April 30, 2025. The first Asian or African pope in modern times? There has never been a pope from what's now known as Asia, nor an African pope since the end of the fifth century. The three African popes before that – Victor I, Miltiades and Gelasius I – were believed to be Black and born during the Roman Empire. All three became saints. Now one of the seemingly top candidates for the papacy is Luis Antonio Tagle, 67, an ally of Francis and a native of the Philippines, home to the largest Catholic population in Asia (about 85 million) and third biggest in the world. Hardly a list of contenders is published without including Tagle's name. Likewise, two African cardinals – Peter Turkson of Ghana and Fridolin Ambongo of the Democratic Republic of Congo, both advocates for social justice – are often mentioned as papabili, or potential candidates. They hail from fertile ground for the church, which saw an increase of more than 3% in African Catholics from 2022 to 2023, totaling more than 280 million. That's 20% of the estimated 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide. The fewest Italian cardinals There was a time – 455 consecutive years, to be exact – when betting the new pope would hail from Italy made for easy money. Now it's a much iffier proposition. The centuries-old tradition of Italian pontiffs ended when John Paul I unexpectedly died in 1978 and was succeeded by the Polish-born John Paul II. The next two popes, Benedict XVI and Francis, were from Germany and Argentina, respectively, and suddenly Italy was on an extended losing streak. There are strong Italian contenders among the current cardinals, including Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and Bologna Archbishop Matteo Zuppi, but with Italian voting representation down to 14%, odds of the next pope coming from the Bel Paese have diminished. Still, it will be a while until any other nation catches up. Italy's 216 popes are 200 more than the next country on the list, France. A man holds a cross as he walks on Saint Peter Square with St Peter's Basilica in the background on April 28, 2025. Several newcomers to the voting process Francis would be proud that the electors at this conclave hail from 71 countries, in keeping with his desire for the church to become more inclusive. Italy still leads with 17, followed by the United States with 10 and Brazil with seven. Perhaps more notable is the presence of more than two dozen cardinal electors from countries that have never voted for a pope, among them Rwanda, Myanmar and South Sudan, according to the Washington Post. 'It has become more exotic,' said Massimo Faggioli, a professor of theology and religious studies at Villanova University. 'There are now many cardinals from Asia and North Africa who are potential popes. That makes it different than it has been for many centuries.' Contributing: Marc Ramirez This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: A conclave like no other: How picking a pope is different this year
The Standard
05-05-2025
- General
- The Standard
Cardinals could pick Filipino Tagle, 'Asian Francis', as next pope
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle attends a mourning Mass for Pope Francis on the fifth day of Novendiali (nine days of mourning after the Pope's funeral) at St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, April 30, 2025. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo
Straits Times
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
The pope will be Italian, wherever he's born
Cardinals arriving to attend a mourning mass for the late Pope Francis on the ninth day of Novendiali at St Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on May 4. PHOTO: REUTERS It's been almost a half a century since questions could be shut down with the verity: 'Is the pope Italian?' In that time, the Roman Catholic Church has been led by a Pole, a German and an Argentine – the longest consecutive line of non-Italians since seven Frenchmen occupied the throne of St Peter. And that was during the 67-year period in the 14th century when the papacy had relocated to Avignon, France. Until the 1978 election of John Paul II – born Karol Wojtyla and archbishop of Krakow – there had been 455 years of Italian popes. As the Holy See prepares for the May 7 conclave to elect a successor to the late Pope Francis, an unofficial but authoritative list of 22 papabili (pope-ables) includes just five Italian cardinals. Indeed, the main standard-bearers for the liberal and conservative wings of the church are from South-east Asia and West Africa, respectively: Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of the Philippines and Cardinal Robert Sarah of Guinea. Even if an Italian is anointed, he'll be leading one of the most diverse and globalised of organisations, religious or otherwise: The pope is the designated spiritual and moral head of the nearly 1.4 billion people across the world who identify as Catholic. Italy isn't even the most populous of Catholic nations. That would be Brazil. Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Cardinals could pick Filipino Tagle, 'Asian Francis', as next pope
FILE PHOTO: Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle leads the Rosary for Pope Francis outside the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major (Santa Maria Maggiore), following the death of the pontiff, in Rome, Italy, April 24, 2025. REUTERS/Hannah McKay/File Photo FILE PHOTO: Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle attends a mourning Mass for Pope Francis on the fifth day of Novendiali (nine days of mourning after the Pope's funeral) at St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, April 30, 2025. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo VATICAN CITY - Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle is sometimes called the "Asian Francis" because of his infectious smile, easy laugh, and spontaneity with words. Like the late Argentine pope, he hails from a country far from the Catholic Church's traditional power base of Europe and came to Rome with an outsider's view. Some who have put Tagle on unofficial short lists for the next pope say he would be a shoo-in to succeed Francis if cardinal electors who enter the secret conclave on Wednesday are looking for as close a similarity as possible in order to assertively continue Francis' progressive streak. If Tagle were elected, it would also likely signal to the world's 1.4 billion Catholics that the cardinals want to go forward with Francis' vision of generally opening up the Church to the modern world by not choosing a man who might roll back some of the late pope's reforms. It would also mean his fellow cardinals had shrugged off question marks over his management abilities. "He would represent a continuity of what Pope Francis has been doing," said Rev. Emmanuel Alfonso, a former student of Tagle's who has known him for decades. "He's really like Pope Francis in terms of his love for the poor, his approachability and so on." Tagle, the former archbishop of Manila, would be the first pope from what is now considered Asia, although in the early Church some popes hailed from what is now called the Middle East, technically part of Asia. Tagle, who looks younger than his 67 years and likes to be called by his diminutive nickname "Chito", has headed the Vatican's Dicastery for Evangelization, effectively the Church's missionary arm, for the past five years. That position gave him enormous influence over national churches in developing countries. As archbishop of Manila, and before as bishop of the Philippine city of Imus, Tagle gained pastoral experience in running dioceses in Asia's largest Catholic country. By bringing him to the Vatican in 2020, Francis gave him one more notch in experiences seen as helpful to papal candidates. Tagle's move to Rome brought criticism from then-Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who oversaw a bloody "war on drugs" that killed thousands of Filipinos during his 2016-2022 administration. Duterte said Tagle had been removed from Manila for meddling in national politics. The Philippine Catholic bishops' conference denied those accusations forcefully. Bishop Pablo Virgilio David of Kalookan, a conference official made a cardinal in 2024, called Duterte's claim "unbelievably ludicrous". Many cardinals already know Tagle personally, and many may see an attraction in having a pope from Asia, viewed by Church leaders as an important region of growth for the faith. Young people feel comfortable with him. When Tagle hosted Francis for a visit to the Philippines in 2014, the visit drew the largest crowds in the history of papal travel, including a Mass that attracted up to 7 million people. DOCTRINAL BACKGROUND Tagle, who speaks Italian, English, and Spanish as well as his native Tagalog, now has five years of experience with the Vatican's arcane bureaucracy, although some cardinals may think even that is not enough to run the global Church. One possible weakness in Tagle's candidacy is that he was involved in a management scandal three years ago. In 2022, Francis removed him from a second job as titular head of a Vatican-based confederation of 162 Catholic relief, development and social services organisations working in more than 200 countries. Francis fired the entire leadership of the group, called Caritas Internationalis, following allegations of bullying by top management. Tagle's role, akin to a chancellor of the organisation, was mostly symbolic and ceremonial. He was not directly involved in day-to-day running and was generally admired by staffers. Unlike Francis, Tagle enjoys a global reputation as a theologian, which could help him gain votes from moderate cardinals concerned by some of Francis' off the cuff utterances, which led to what some called confusion about Church teachings. In the 1990s, he served on the Vatican's International Theological Commission under German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who was known as a strict adherent to traditional doctrine and would later become Pope Benedict XVI. Rev. Joseph Komonchak, Tagle's professor at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., said the cardinal was one of his best students in 45 years of teaching. "Not the least of Chito's virtues was the joy that he radiated on everyone who encountered him," said Komonchak. "He had a fine sense of humor, which endeared him to his fellow students." Rev. Robert Reyes, a seminary classmate who has known Tagle for more than 50 years, said Tagle has an ability to connect with people and a simple style of living. When he first became a bishop in 2001, he didn't own a car. "He preferred to take rides, to hitch a ride with someone driving to a place that perhaps both of them were going to," said Reyes. While 67 is sunset age in many organisations, it is considered young in the Vatican, because few cardinals want a very long pontificate. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Sky News AU
04-05-2025
- Politics
- Sky News AU
Cardinals attend final mourning mass for Pope Francis ahead of conclave
Catholic Church cardinals have attended the final mourning mass for Pope Francis before gathering for a conclave to elect the next pontiff. French Cardinal Dominique Mamberti led the prayer in St Peter's Basilica on the last day of the Novendiali. Around 133 cardinals under the age of 80 will enter the Sistine Chapel on May 7 to vote for the next church leader.
