By Gabriel Patrick Lagu
“Jorge Mario Bergoglio,” the Carmelengo shouted Pope Francis’ baptismal name the third time, then he announced to the world, “Sede Vacans” (“The throne is empty”).
Meaning Pope Francis officially had been declared dead on the chilly morning after the Easter Sunday celebrations.
Lots has taken place since the death of the supreme pontiff, from the arrival of cardinals to world leaders, flocking from the four corners of the world to pay their last respects to the 266th deceased pope. After which, the cardinals are expected to stay back to elect a new pope.
However, lots of conspiracies and deliberately misleading information have been circulating about the secrecy of the conclave, from media negative influences to useless public debates. When the Pope dies, the Mother Church passes through days of complete emptiness, not because of spiritual difficulties or monetary instability, but the loss of a shepherd who has an intimate love for his flock. This unpredictable event bridges to the collective government of the cardinals during the Sede vacante, where the power is fully bestowed on the Camerlengo in union with the brother cardinals.
After the burial of the pope, nine days are set apart to mourn the deceased pope, known as the Novemdiales, and in the case of Pope Francis, it ended last Sunday (the third Sunday of Easter), after which is followed by a series of general assemblies and finally transcending to the conclave.
The time when the whole world’s eyes are fixed on the Vatican City to witness a new history, a successor to the seat of Peter.
But before this, cardinals who are eligible to vote should have undergone a contemplative time inside the Sistine Chapel in choosing the next Holy See.
So, what is the big deal about the conclave?
The papal conclave is a gathering of the College of Cardinals with the aim of electing the new Bishop of Rome. There lies a vast historical background to this procedure since the early Christianity around circa 104 AD.
The word conclave is derived from a Latin saying, “cum clave,” which means “with a key.” Definitely, as the rule states, cardinal electors are not permitted to make contact with the outside environment nor to leave the Sistine Chapel until a new pope has been elected. This social cut aims to foster the spirit of discernment and making the right choice for a leader.
Centuries back, since the apostolic ages, popes have been elected by clergy and laity, as was the case with any bishop of that time. With time, several amendments have fallen into place, citing the limitations of electors to only cardinals in circa 1059 AD.
Paul VI went further to make a design that is used to this very day, where cardinal electors should be under 80 years of age regardless of their rankings in the college—cardinal deacons, cardinal priests, and cardinal bishops. The present-day amendments, which will be used the 7th May, 2025, have undergone the correcting hands of Pope John Paul II and Benedict XVI.
Africa has presented a number of 18 cardinal electors, something that has never happened before, with strong wings of the conservative traditionalist voice, Cardinal Robert Sarah of Guinea and Cardinal Peter Turkson of Ghana, a diplomat who was even once a papal peace envoy to our country, South Sudan. These cardinals bring in vibrant expertise from the continent of Africa to the coming conclave and may have a chance to be elected. His Eminence, Stephen Cardinal Ameyu Martin Mulla, the Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Juba, will fully participate, representing South Sudan at the age of 67, as a cardinal elector elevated as a cardinal with the rank of cardinal priest of the title Saint Gemma Galgani Parish in Rome on the 30th of September 2023 general consistory.
The most recent papal conclave took place in 2013, electing Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio as the known Pope Francis, preceding the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI.
For one to stand as a pope, two-thirds of a supermajority of votes must be met to proclaim the successor of Saint Peter. For the case of the coming conclave on the 7th of May, 2025, 133 cardinals have been confirmed by the Vatican to be participants as cardinal electors; therefore, for a pope to emerge one of these days, a candidate should at least secure 100 votes to gain the supermajority. Hence, when the supermajority is not met, ballots are drawn again until it is gained, prior to the 1621 Papal Bull Aeterni Patris Filius of Pope Gregory XV.
Before entering the Sistine Chapel, the cardinal electors usually listen to sermons before and after entering the Sistine Chapel. In both sermons, the qualities of the next pope are unfolded, given into consideration the present state of the church.
The morning of the appointed date, the cardinal electors assemble in Saint Peter’s Basilica to celebrate mass and later on gather in the afternoon in the Pauline Chapel and process to the Sistine Chapel, chanting the litany of saints while also invoking the presence of the Holy Spirit, after which they take oaths of secrecy during the event in the conclave. After all oaths are taken by cardinal electors, all are expelled from the Sistine Chapel. Until then, the doors of the conclave shall be closed with a key, leaving the cardinal electors in seclusion.
The voting process is a unique one compared to the political one. This is a voting that is done without defined contestants, meaning there are no names of candidates given as the next leaders of the church; rather, all are equal with the chance to be voted for and become a pope, so it’s a matter of just filling the ballot with the one who you think is eligible to be pope with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. A maximum of four ballots are done every day: two in the morning, followed by two in the afternoon. Before each voting session, the oaths are retaken to instil the spirit of obedience.
In the scrutiny phase, the cardinals proceed in the order of precedence with their completed votes and say the Latin oath: “Testor Christum Dominum qui me iudicaturas est, me eum quem secundum Deum iudico eligi debere.”
“I call as my witness Christ the Lord, who is to judge me that I choose him whom, according to God, I judge ought to be elected.”
Sick cardinals during the operations are reached with ballot papers at their respective rooms to take the oaths and drop the ballot paper into the box.
The preceding votes from both scrutinies are always burnt together at the second scrutiny. Progressions about the conclave are shown to the world through the indications of fumes emitted from the chimney above the Sistine Chapel. Black smoke shows that there’s not yet a supermajority of votes gained in the papal election, whereas white soot bulging out from the chimney indicates a new pope has been elected.
Once a decisive move is achieved, the Dean of the College of Cardinals asks the Pope-elect whether he accepts the canonical election. If the pope-elect accepts, the dean goes ahead and inquires for the papal name different from the one in the baptismal, which he wishes his papacy to be known for. This is the most intricate part, for every pope comes with new visions for the church and impersonates either apostles or saints for that. In the case of Pope Francis, the pope whose vision was to bring the church close to the poor, for the church is a body of service not to be praised, chose the name of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint for animals, famous for his poverty for the greater good. Embracing the life of poverty, in a humble gesture, Francis left the royal papal house in the basilica to rent a single room with limited assets. Just simply creating a strong legacy.
The new pope then goes to the room of tears, a small red room next to the Sistine Chapel. This is the room where the new pope feels the weight of the new tasks obliged to him, which is always attributed to tears, for it’s suspense lingering emotions within.
Then, followed by the proto-deacon of the College of Cardinals, the senior deacon appears at the loggia of the basilica to proclaim the new pope. “… Habemus Papam…” “… We have a Pope…”
He goes ahead to mention the baptismal name of the cardinal elected plus the name by which he needs his papacy to be known.
After which the senior deacon retreats as the new pope steps onto the balcony to the adulation of the crowd, giving the first traditional Urbi et Orbi Apostolic blessing.
These are the series of events that the church will be experiencing this 7th day of May, 2025. So, it’s not a secret, but we have to understand that they have to be left alone to discern fully in meditations, which obviously doesn’t require the eyes of the world, for the responsibility of electing a new pope is not something easy, which I call on a cardinal, and boom, a pope. No, they have to take quality time to elect one who is a rightful leader for the church at the time. Let our thoughts drift from the secrecy of the conclave to the world needs a good pope to restore the open wounds on morality and Christian ethics.
The conclave is not just supposed to be followed and watched like a spectator; rather, you should participate in prayers for the mother church to make a good decision.
Let’s pray for a good pope……
Stay blessed.
The author is a student from Kings Academy Digital Secondary School.