Before ‘habemus papam’

What to expect before the cardinals elect a pope

With the death of Pope Francis Monday, the Church is now in sede vacante, the vacancy of the Apostolic See.

The symbol of a vacant papal see. Credit: Vatican Media.

The College of Cardinals has assumed temporary governing responsibilities for the Church, and cardinals have begun preparing to elect a new pope.

The College of Cardinals met Monday in the first general congregation - a series of preparatory meetings of the college before a conclave is held - to decide on the papal funeral and the beginning of the novendiali, the nine days of mourning after the death of the pope.

But what actually happens these days between popes?

Papal funeral

On Wednesday, April 23, the body of Pope Francis will be transferred from the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae to St. Peter’s Basilica.

The procession will enter through the central door of the basilica, and Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, will lead a Liturgy of the Word.

Pilgrims who want to pray for the repose of the Holy Father in front of his body will be able to do it on April 23 after the procession ceremony, and again on April 24 and 25.

Then, on Saturday, April 26, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals, will preside over the funeral Mass of Pope Francis at 10 am Rome time.

The funeral Mass marks the beginning of the Novendiali, nine days of mourning for the death of the Pope in which the Cardinals ought to “celebrate the funeral rites for the repose of his soul,” according to the apostolic constitution Universi dominici gregis.

After the funeral, the pope’s coffin will be taken to Rome’s Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, his chosen burial site.

General congregations

The College of Cardinals held the first preparatory general congregation April 22, is the first of a number of daily meetings the cardinals will hold until the conclave.

Some questioned on social media whether the meeting came too soon to allow all cardinals to arrive in Rome, but the practice is not without precedent. In 2005, following the death of St. John Paul II, the first general congregation was held just two days later, on April 4.

The first general congregation bears a certain urgency because it decides when and how the pope’s body will be displayed for “the homage of the faithful” and to make the necessary funeral arrangements.

These general congregations are also responsible for reading and dealing with any documents left for the College of Cardinals by the pope, approve expenses for running the Vatican until the next pope is elected, and arrange for the destruction of the Fisherman’s Ring, and the seal with which Francis authorized legal acts.

The cardinals will also select two people known for “sound doctrine, wisdom and moral authority” to present meditations to the cardinals on the problems facing the Church and on the need for careful discernment in choosing the next pope.

While these general congregations are meeting, and the cardinals are “meditating” among themselves on who the next pope might be, there are also regular meetings of what canon law calls “particular congregations,” which are basically executive subcommittees charged with approving the ordinary business of the global Church or Vatican affairs as needed.

The conclave

Universi dominici gregis indicates that the conclave begins at least 15 days after the death of the pope, namely, May 5.

The date can be moved forward if all the cardinal electors who will take part in the conclave are already present. The date can also be deferred for five more days for grave reasons. In light of those limits, the conclave should begin between May 5 and May 10.

If history serves as an indication, a date close to May 6 is more likely. The 2005 conclave started on April 18, 16 days after the death of Saint John Paul II.

When the next pope will be elected is a completely different matter.

After Mass on the morning it begins, the conclave formally gets underway: a final mediation is given to the electors, and the doors to the Sistine Chapel are shut.

The electors vote once on the first afternoon, and four times a day — twice in the morning and twice in the afternoon — on the following days, with a two-thirds majority needed to elect a pope.

If no one is elected after the first three days of voting, the cardinals break for a day of prayer and reflection.

They are encouraged to have “informal discussion” among themselves and “a brief spiritual exhortation” is to be given by the senior cardinal in the Order of Deacons — Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, the chief judge of the Church’s supreme canonical court.

The cardinals then vote for another seven ballots, with another break if there is no result.

In the event of a deadlock after 33 rounds of voting, there’s a run-off.

The new pope could be elected a day after the conclave begins, as was the case of Benedict XVI in 2005. Or, perhaps, the election could take two years and nine months, as happened in the 1268 conclave, which ended up electing Pope Gregory X in 1271.

Since 1900, the longest conclave in 1922 conclave: it took five days to elect Pope Pius XI.

If recent history serves as a rule, there could be a new pope by the second half of May.