Today is the day! In three days (hopefully), the Roman Catholic Church will have a new leader. The election of the pope is one of the most widely covered events in the world because it has a profound impact, not only to the life of the universal church, but also to the world.
Whoever is elected, a heavy weight of responsibilities awaits the new pope. He is not only a religious leader but also the Head of State as the Vatican City is the world's smallest nation. A pope is also very influential, he is widely seen as the world's most effective mediator of peace and a great equalizer between politics and religion.
The Roman Catholic church is the world's largest religious denomination with over 1.4 billion members. And a Pope is always an influential world leader as he is not only a missionary preaching the gospel but also the world's messenger of peace. He often negotiates peace and reconciliation between warring nations, bridges the gap between religions, and advocates fairness, justice, and social awareness.
This year's Conclave, which starts today, May 7, is largely diverse with a large number of electors than in the previous conclaves, thanks to Pope Francis's reforms. He created so many Cardinals from far-flung nations and 80% of the cardinal-electors are appointed by him. But what made this year's different from the previous conclaves is that most of these cardinals don't know each other.
Unlike in the past conclaves where cardinal-electors mostly came from Europe, this year only 39% came from Europe, the rest are divided into different continents - Asia, 24%, followed by Africa with around 22%, and Latin America with 17%.
According to Cardinal Dolan of New York City, they didn't know much of each other before this year's conclave, so the first thing they did was to read the biography, background, and accomplishments of each cardinal.
They also try to get to know each other through coffee breaks, and lately, through meetings where they discuss important issues that the church is facing and what actions they must take to find solutions to these issues.
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| The cardinals during the funeral mass for Pope Francis |
Currently, the Catholic Church has more than 200 cardinals, but only 133 are cardinal-electors who will participate in this year's conclave. Cardinals should be below 80 years old to be eligible to vote for the next pope.
Some of the experts say, Cardinals are wary about electing a young pope because they do not want a longer papacy. They want a short papacy to avoid being trapped in the same policy or programs of a setting pope.
Papacy is also like a monarchy; in fact, the Vatican is like an absolute monarchy where the Pope absolutely rules. The mandate is for life, meaning as long as the Pope is alive or hasn't resigned, he remains the head of the Catholic Church and the State of the Vatican, and he cannot be replaced unless he dies or resigns.
That's why cardinals do not want a younger person to become a pope, but let's see if this is accurate. The last young cardinal elected into the papacy was Cardinal Carol Wojtyla of Warsaw (Poland) in 1978, he was 58 when he was elected in 1978. He became Pope John Paul II and reigned for 27 years. Pope Francis was 76 when he was elected in 2013.
So what are we looking for (the qualities) in a new pope? Well, it's always someone who guards the doctrine of the church, a messenger of peace, someone who nurtures the Catholic teaching, and someone who has a strong sense of leadership.
However, there are other qualities that I am hoping the new pope would possess. As we are now in the modern age where "action" is needed to carry the real mission of the church and in touch with the modern times, personally, I want someone who is relatable to the faithful, especially to the younger generation.
Hopefully, the next pope will continue the programs and reforms introduced by Pope Francis. Don't want to go back to the "too traditional" approach of the church because it alienates the younger generation, the reasons why so many faithful left the Catholic Church.
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| The late Pope Francis was a progressive and charismatic church leader and a great reformer |
As a Roman Catholic, these are the qualities I'm hoping the next pope possesses:
- Progressive - I want someone who is in touch with the current times, someone who is relatable to the modern world, someone who cares about the humanity, someone who will look on pressing social issues, such as climate change, social injustices and unfairness, conflicts between nations, and the welfare of the vulnerable in the society. Someone who will respond to the humanity crisis that the world is facing, at the same time pro-poor.
- A Charismatic Leader and Pastoral - Faithful's belief in the church is waning, so we need a charismatic leader who can effectively lead back the people to the church. Someone who has strong charisma to connect with the masses. Both St. John Paul II and Pope Francis were charismatic church leaders; they possessed unique qualities in touching the lives of so many people and attracting the interest of the faithful through their relatable and engaging approach.
- An evangelist and an effective Messenger of Peace - These are powerful combination of great qualities of a new pope. The Roman Catholic Church needs a progressive leader who is an effective messenger of peace and evangelist. A pope is not just religious leaders who focuses on preaching the gospel, but also a proactive world leader who knows how to serve as a negotiator of peace, someone who inspires the world to give peace and solidarity a place in every nation's heart. We also need a pope who is an effective evangelist who spreads the good news of the gospel to every corner of the world.
- A church reformer at the same time a guardian of Catholic doctrines - We need a church reformer just like Pope Francis because it makes the Catholic Church a living church that cares for humanity. But at the same time, we need a pope who will protect the Catholic doctrines, who will guard the Catholic teaching. We also want a pope who will look at the abuses committed by church authorities.
- A Diplomat - I am hoping the next pope will have a strong sense of diplomacy, who knows how to handle international relations and global affairs. Again, a pope is only only a religious leader but he is also a diplomat who knows things about international relations and global affairs. An effective messenger of peace should have a strong sense of diplomacy because most world leaders nowadays don't have these qualities; that's why the world is in chaos right now.
But of course, we know that the members of the College of Cardinals who will elect the next pope have their own criteria in choosing who among them will rightfully lead the church. So whoever they choose we will accept it wholeheartedly.
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| The Papabile: Cardinals Zuppi of Italy, Parolin of Italy, Tagle of the Philippines, and Turkson of Ghana |
There are so-called "papabile," an Italian term for "pope able," referring to cardinals who have a great chance to be elected as pope due to their unique qualities. There are so many choices among the college of cardinals, but I want to streamline the choices to four cardinals because I believe these four possess some of the qualities we are looking for in a new pope:
1. Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi. Country: Italy. Age: 69. Orientation: Progressive. Matteo Maria Zuppi (born 11 October 1955) is an Italian Catholic prelate who has served as Archbishop of Bologna since 2015. Pope Francis made him a cardinal in 2019. He has been president of the Episcopal Conference of Italy since 2022.
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| Cardinal Zuppi of Italy |
During this time, Zuppi opposed right-wing populism, nationalism and anti-immigrant beliefs, emphasizing Europe's moral duty to welcome migrants. As a close associate of Pope Francis, who supported many of his initiatives, Zuppi is seen as a leading contender in the upcoming 2025 papal conclave.
These views resulted in clashes with Matteo Salvini, leader of Italy's Lega Party, alongside other individuals of the Italian right. He was a voice of support for the 2018 Vatican-China Agreement, which allows the pope to approve and veto bishops approved by the Chinese Communist Party. He has written three books on Catholicism and additionally contributed an essay to the Italian translation of James Martin's Building a Bridge.
2. Cardinal Pietro Parolin OMRI. Country: Italy. Age: 70. Orientation: Moderate. Born on 17 January 1955, he is an Italian Catholic prelate who has served as the Vatican's Secretary of State since 2013 and as a member of the Council of Cardinals. He was made Cardinal in 2014 by Pope Francis.
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| Cardinal Parolin of Italy, the current state secretary of the Vatican |
Before his tenure as secretary of state, Parolin worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See for 30 years, where his assignments included terms in Nigeria, Mexico and Venezuela, as well as more than six years as Undersecretary of State for Relations with States.
As the Cardinal Secretary of State, Parolin set the Vatican's foreign policy stances under Pope Francis. Positions taken by Parolin include denouncing Israel and its actions in Gaza, calling for a halt in war crimes and protection of Gazan citizens. Parolin was one of the primary architects of the Vatican's 2018 agreement with China. In doctrine, Parolin maintains the traditional dogmas of the Church regarding Zionism, same-sex marriage, and euthanasia, while retaining an openness in revising the disciplines that surround clerical celibacy.
3. Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle. Country: Philippines. Age: 67. Orientation: Progressive. Born on June 21, 1957, he is a Filipino prelate of the Catholic Church currently serving as the Pro-Prefect for the Section of First Evangelization of the Dicastery for Evangelization since June 5, 2022, He is also the President of Interdicasterial Commission for Consecrated Religious since December 8, 2019.
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| Cardinal Tagle of the Philippines |
He was the 32nd Archbishop of Manila from 2011 to 2020. Tagle is the Cardinal-Bishop of San Felice da Cantalice a Centocelle (Cardinal-Bishops are the highest authorities in the Catholic Church next to the pope) and also serves as the President of the Catholic Biblical Federation, Grand Chancellor of the Pontifical Urbaniana University, and as a member of various departments and dicasteries in the Roman Curia.
Cardinal Chito is often dubbed as the "Asian Francis" due to the similarities of his style with Pope Francis in engaging with the people. He is a charismatic church leader who easily connects with his audience and the faithful. He is often seen as a representative of the Catholic Church's progressive wing. Just like the reforms introduced by Pope Francis, Cardinal Tagle favors allowing divorced and remarried Catholics to receive Holy Communion on a case-by-case basis.
He has expressed inclusion for gay Catholics and supports the 2018 Vatican–China agreement, which allows the pope to appoint and veto bishops approved by the Chinese Communist Party. Tagle advocates for the protection of immigrants and has criticized the preferential treatment of Christians in refugee resettlement programs within Western nations, arguing that it amounts to discrimination.
4. Cardinal Peter Turkson. Country: Ghana (Africa). Age: 76. Orientation: Progressive. Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson was born on 11 October 1948. He is a Ghanaian Catholic prelate who has served as chancellor of the Pontifical Academies of Sciences since 2022. He served as President of the Ghana Catholic Bishops' Conference from 1997 to 2005, and as Chancellor of the Catholic University College of Ghana beginning in 2003.
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| Cardinal Turkson of Ghana |
St. John Paul II created Turkson Cardinal-Priest of San Liborio in his final consistory of 21 October 2003. Turkson is the first Ghanaian cardinal and was one of the cardinal electors who participated in the papal conclave of 2005 that elected Pope Benedict XVI and the papal conclave of 2013 that elected Pope Francis.
He was president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace from 2009 to 2017 and the inaugural prefect of the Dicastery for the Promotion of Integral Human Development from 2017 to 2021. Turkson was previously the Archbishop of Cape Coast from 1992 to 2009, and was made a cardinal by Pope John Paul II in 2003.
On 24 October 2009, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Turkson president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. Turkson is also a member of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church, and, since 4 March 2010, the Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses. On 12 June 2012, Turkson was appointed a member of the Congregation for Catholic Education.
On 16 October 2010, Pope Benedict named him to a five-year renewable term as a member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Since 2009, Turkson had been president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.
In the spring of 2011, Pope Benedict XVI sent Cardinal Turkson as a mediator to contribute to a diplomatic, non-military solution to the civil conflict in Ivory Coast, where Laurent Gbagbo had refused, despite international condemnation and local protests and resistance, to step aside and hand over power to Alassane Ouattara, the certified winner of the presidential election.
In October 2011, Turkson called for the establishment of a "global public authority" and a "central world bank" to rule over financial institutions that have become outdated and often ineffective in dealing fairly with crises. His text was very specific, calling for taxation measures on financial transactions.
Are Contenders Sure Winners?
However, in the history of the Papacy, not all "papabile" emerged as winners. In the last three conclaves, only Pope Benedict XVI was papabile; both Pope John Paul II and Pope Francis were surprised choices because their names were not mentioned as papabile during the 1978 and 2013 conclaves.
So it would not be surprising that the new pope for this conclave is not among the contenders. Let's just hope that the successor of Pope Francis will carry out the mission of the church both in the gospel and in social action. May the Holy Spirit will guide the Cardinal-Electors to elect the right person to be the next Pope.
Official Titles of the Pope
The term pope comes from the Latin papa, and from the Greek πάππας (pappas, which is an affectionate word for 'father'). This is the most famous title associated with the bishop of Rome, being used in protocol, documents, and signatures.
There are several interpretations of the term pope, among them: that pope would be a Latin acronym, where each letter would correspond to a word: Petri apostoli potestatem accipiens ("the one who receives the power of the apostle Peter"); or even Petrus apostolus princeps apostolorum ("Peter the apostle, Prince of the Apostles"). It has also been proposed as its origin the union of the first syllables of the Latin words pater ('father') and pastor ('shepherd').
However, the official titles of the Pope are these:
- Bishop of Rome (Episcopus Romanus)
- Vicar of Jesus Christ (Vicarius Iesu Christi)
- Successor of the Prince of the Apostles (Successor principis apostolorum)
- Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church (Summus Pontifex Ecclesiae Universalis)
- Patriarch of the West (Patriarcha Occidentis)
- Primate of Italy (Primatus Italiae)
- Metropolitan Archbishop of the Roman Province (Archiepiscopus metropolitanus provinciae Romanae)
- Sovereign of the Vatican City State (Superanus sui iuris civitatis Vaticanae)
- Servant of the Servants of God (Servus Servorum Dei)
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