An ancient ritual where history, spirituality and geopolitical intertwine in the magnificent scenario of the Sistine Chapel. The Conclave To elect Pope Francis’ successor, he will take place in early May.
It is up to the general congregations of the cardinals to fix the start date. Already on Tuesday morning the first general congregation met in which all those who reside in Rome took part and who have already come to the Vatican from the various parts of the world. Then in the next few days all the others will be added. General congregations can participate not only the cardinal voters (i.e. with less than 80 years), But also those who because of the completion of this age threshold have lost the right to enter the conclave. In total, the Cardinal College is made up of 252 purple (117 non -voters).
But who are the purple called to choose the new pontiff? There are currently 135 with voting rights, that is, that they are not exceeded 80 years of age. 70 percent of the voters were appointed by Pope Francis which in each year of the pontificate, with the exception of 2021, convened a consistory (for a total of ten) for the creation of new cardinals, also exceeding John Paul II which in all his pontificate kept nine.
The next conclave, therefore, will participate 108 cardinals created by Francesco. They are 109 if you also consider Angelo Becciu, former prefect of the dicastery of the causes of the saints, which by age has the right to enter the Sistine and that in an interview a The Sardinian Union He said he had preserved his prerogatives: «Recalling me to the last Construction (the one in which he became Cardinal Arrigo Miglio, former Archbishop of Cagliari and who welcomed Bergoglio in his historic visit of September 2013, editor’s note) The Pope recognized my cardinal prerogatives intact as there was no explicit will to ousted me from the conclave or the request for my explicit renunciation in writing».
Becciu was the first cardinal in history to be tried by an ordinary Vatican court. The procedure, which ended in December 2023, ended with a sentence of 5 years and 6 months of imprisonment for embezzlement and abuse of office, as well as a fine. However, the sentence is not yet definitive: Becciu has appealed on appeal and declares himself innocent. The Vatican press room confirmed Tuesday that all the cardinals were invited to the general congregations, including Becciu.
Returning to the geography of the Conclave, the “survivors” to the pontificated precedents are 27 voters, of which Only 5 created by John Paul II and 22 by Benedict XVI.
Especially in the latest shells, Francesco has privileged prelates of a young age including, for example, the Ukrainian Mykola Bychok who is only 44 years old and takes his ministry in Australia.
The one who made Pope Francis with the complex of his cardinal appointments, including the last ones, are una Chiesa and a sacred college and less and less, less and less Italian and western traction, With a careful and very large look at the suburbs and to the “border” churches throughout the planet. There are many western dioceses who do not have a cardinal: Milan, Paris, Los Angeles, Buenos Aires herself.
Still looking at the origin, 59 will be the cardinals from Europe (19 from Italy), 37 from the Americas (16 from North America, four from the Central one, 17 from the South America), 20 Cardinals from Asia, 16 from Africa, three from Oceania.
There are many instances that will be brought first to the general congregations and then in the vote in conclave: from the defense of creation, to the care of poverty and inequalities in all their dimensions, to the suburbs, as Bergoglio defined them, “both physical and existential”.
How many will be the representatives of the religious orders present in Conclave. THEn all 34: five Salesians, 4 Jesuits (the Order of Bergoglio), a cappuccino friar, four Franciscans, three conventual Franciscans, two Dominicans, Two Vincenziani, two Redeemer, two verbiti, and then the others, up to the missionary of the console Giorgio MarengoPiedmontese of origin, 50 years old, from 2020 apostolic prefect of Ulan Bator.
The youngest of the Conclave will be the Ukrainian Mykola Bywards, 45 years old on 13 February. The oldest The Spaniard Carlos Osoro Sierra, Archbishop Emeritus of Madrid, who will turn 80 on May 16th, followed by only one month from Guineano Robert Sarah, Emeritus prefect of the Congregation for Divine Cult.
Among the cardinals entitled, he announced that he will not participate in the conclave Vinko Puljić, Archbishop of Sarajevo from 1990 to 2002, “for health reasons”, as Puljić himself announced to the RTL Croatian TV broadcaster.
Decisive, to meet, discuss and get to know each other in person, it will be precisely the General Congregations in which the conclave will be prepared by discussing the dossiers on the table.
Pragmatism and also the proverbial irony of Pope Francis have meant that on several occasions he found himself externalizing on his possible successor. Joking, Bergoglio had already “chosen” the name of his successor: John XXIV. In 2023, on the return flight from Mongolia, Francesco said that Giovanni XXIV would do the next trip. But also two years earlier, when the bishop of Ragusa, Monsignor Giuseppe Giuseppe met him and invited him to visit the Sicilian city for the 75th anniversary of the foundation of the diocese in 2025, Bergoglio used the same name.
