The Vatican has announced that the conclave to elect the successor to Pope Francis will commence on Wednesday, May 7.

Papal spokesman Matteo Bruni confirmed the date on Monday, following the death of Pope Francis on April 21.

The Vatican also announced that “the Sistine Chapel will be closed to the public from Monday 28 April 2025 for the requirements of the Conclave.”

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s secretary of state, led a special Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica on Sunday, which was attended by an estimated 200,000 people.

 

During the Mass, Parolin said, “The shepherd whom the Lord gave to his people, Pope Francis, has ended his earthly life and has left us. The grief at his departure, the sense of sadness that assails us, the turmoil we feel in our hearts, the sense of bewilderment: we are experiencing all of this, like the apostles grieving over the death of Jesus. Yet, the Gospel tells us that it is precisely in these moments of darkness that the Lord comes to us with the light of the resurrection, to illuminate our hearts.”

Parolin, a close associate of Pope Francis and considered the Vatican’s No. 2, is among those considered potential candidates for the papacy.

According to the archbishop administering St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome, Pope Francis chose to be buried there, near an icon of the Madonna he deeply revered, reflecting his “humble, simple and essential” life.

 

The conclave, organized by the camerlengo, currently Cardinal Kevin Ferrell, begins 15 to 20 days after the Pope’s death.

Tim Gabrielli, associate professor and the Gudorf chair in Catholic intellectual traditions at the University of Dayton in Ohio, told Digital, “Anything could happen.”

During the conclave, cardinals cast secret ballots. A two-thirds majority is necessary for a successful election. After each vote, the ballots are read aloud and then burned. The resulting smoke signals the status of the election to the world and those gathered in St. Peter’s Square.

Black smoke emerging from the Sistine Chapel indicates another round of voting will take place. White smoke signifies the election of a new leader of the Roman Catholic Church.

‘ Danielle Wallace, Gabriele Regalbuto, Courtney Walsh-Annesi and  

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