By: Karlos Tse (’27)
Pope Francis
Seeing his last Easter, Pope Francis passed away from a stroke on April 21st, serving over 12 years as the head of the Roman Catholic Church. According to the Vatican, his last words were, “Thank you for bringing me back to the Square.” He said this message to Massimiliano Strappetti, an Italian nurse who recommended life saving colon surgery to the pontiff.
Possible Candidates
Conclave would begin on May 7th with various cardinals spiking international interest; Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle came from the Philippines and would mark the first Asian pope in history. Cardinal Tagle shared similar views to Pope Francis, focusing on social issues and migrants. He also served as the Archbishop of Manila, during which he requested the Church “reassess” its views on homosexuality, single mothers and divorcees .
Another popular choice was Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state. Despite the history of Italian popes, there hasn’t been one since Pope John Paul I, who became the pope on August 26th, 1978. He would be found dead 33 days later.
These are just two of the several candidates for the position of pope. To discover more, visit BBC’s coverage, listing several candidates and descriptions.
How is a pope elected?
Once a pope dies or resigns, the College of Cardinals, who are appointed by the pope prior, will begin a papal election, more recently made famous by the movie starring Ralph Finnes as Cardinal Lawrence in the movie called Conclave. In this process, cardinals take an oath of secrecy and meet in the Sistine Chapel where they will be isolated from the rest of society. Cardinals place their votes in an attempt to reach a ⅔ majority to elect the new pope. If a ⅔ majority is not reached, the ballots are burned with chemicals and produce the famous black smoke, revealing to the world that the vote is inconclusive and that the College of Cardinals will begin the process again until white smoke is released. The newly elected pope will then choose papel name in which they will be addressed for the rest of history.
Who is the pope now?
“Habemus papam,” or in English, “we have a pope,” was announced on May 8th in response to the election of Cardinal Prevost, now taking the papal name of Pope Leo XIV. This first American pope spent much of his time in South America, being a missionary in Peru and according to BBC, he spent his time building infrastructure and aiding marginalized communities. With a strong background, the more significant question may be what his values are.
Pope Leo I was known for meeting Atila the Hun, persuading him to turn away from attacking Rome. Pope Leo XIII aligned with his views on social justice by encouraging workers’ rights. With all this said, one could assume that Pope Leo XIV has a focus towards global social justice and issues. Little is known about the new pontiff’s beliefs yet several quotes accumulated over the years may provide insight.
In regards to climate change, the pontiff suggested that we move “from words to action”, calling society to build a “relationship of reciprocity” with the environment.
In 2024, the current Pope Leo XIV was interviewed by Catholic New Service in regards to women where he stated that their service, “contributes significantly to the process of discernment in looking for who we hope are the best candidates to serve the Church in episcopal ministry”.
Recent news
The new pontiff recently called for the release of journalists and other media members from prison. He believes that they were unjustly imprisoned “for seeking and reporting the truth.” Later, he added, “the way we communicate is of fundamental importance: we must say ‘no’ to the war of words and images, we must reject the paradigm of war.” He advocates for the right of free speech saying, “we do not need loud, forceful communication… but rather communication that is capable of listening and of gathering the voices of the weak who have no voice.”
Many of us have lived through and seen a momentous moment in history. With the new election of Pope Leo XIV, the Roman Catholic sees a change in leadership. Will there be a change of direction? And if so, for the better or for worse?