Cardinals begin pre-conclave meetings

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 4:59 pm by Deacon Greg Kandra

Cardinals begin pre-conclave meetings 2016-09-30T16:59:39-04:00 Deacon Greg Kandra

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

And they have a lot on their plate. Details:

Cardinals from around the world gathered Monday inside the Vatican for their first round of meetings before the conclave to elect the next pope, amid scandals inside and out of the Vatican and the continued reverberations of Benedict XVI’s decision to retire.

Cardinals were treated like rock stars as they entered the Vatican on Monday morning, with television crews swarming around the red-capped churchmen and their handlers pushing their way through the crowds.

“A Latin American Pope is possible, everything is possible!” said Portuguese Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins as he entered.

The core agenda item is to set the date for the conclave and set in place procedures to prepare for it, including closing the Sistine Chapel to visitors and getting the Vatican hotel cleared out and de-bugged, lest anyone try to listen in on the secret conversations of the cardinals.

But a date may not be agreed upon Monday as the dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, has said the date won’t be finalized until all cardinals have arrived in Rome.

Catholic News Service adds:

Honduran Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga of Tegucigalpa said the general congregations begin with the actual business of running the church during the extraordinary period when there is no pope.

While the cardinals do not have to plan and set a budget for a funeral and burial — which past general congregations have had to do after the death of a pope — there still is a “sede vacante” budget to approve and the formal authorizing of sede vacante stamps and coins.

In the general congregation, the cardinals set the date for the beginning of the conclave, but the Vatican spokesman said that is unlikely to happen on the first day.

The cardinals also begin examining together and in depth the rules for the conclave and for electing a new pope, Cardinal Rodriguez Maradiaga told Catholic News Service March 1. They invite experts in canon law to join them and give advice if some points are unclear or in dispute.

Only after they deal with practical business, he said, will they begin discussing the main challenges facing the church.

In 2005, he said, they had broad discussions, then broke up into small groups, according to continent, “so we could define better the challenges” particular to their region. “I believe we will do the same” this time, the cardinal said.

Asked if there also are secret meetings in backrooms and restaurants before the conclave, he said: “These are stories. I never had those kinds of meetings during the last conclave. It’s a different thing trying to elect a pope than vote for a candidate of a (political) party. We, instead of thinking of candidates, we think of the main challenges, the main problems, and then try to think, in prayer, who can be the best-suited person for facing those challenges and trying to help the church.”

As soon as Pope Benedict announced his resignation, the cardinal said, every Mass in the Tegucigalpa Archdiocese began with a prayer for the election of the new pope. “And, of course, my prayer has been directed to the Holy Spirit, asking for light and wisdom” as he prepares for the conclave.

Once inside the conclave, he said, “there will be many names” that come out on the first ballot. “But then time goes by. We try to focus, especially, on the main challenges of the church and who can be the person to answer those challenges.”

Cardinal Rodriguez Maradiaga, 70, said it’s necessary for the cardinals to consider the age of the candidates, but that does not mean it will be the determining factor “because knowing now there is a precedence of resignation means the next pope will not be tied to going until death; it is possible to serve for a certain number of years and then retire. Why not?”

The cardinal said it is possible that his brother electors will decide to look outside Europe for the next pope, “but it’s not a matter of nationality or where you were born. It’s a matter of the main problems of the church and the person who could answer, no matter where he was born.”

“But, of course, the church is growing in the American continent. We have the majority of Catholics in the world, which is a very interesting factor to take into consideration,” he said. “Asia is the big challenge and the big horizon because it has more than one-third of the population of the whole world and the least number of Catholics, so for the missionary aspect, it will be important. Africa is flourishing in hope and growing in numbers of Catholics.”

Read more.

Pope

Previous Post

March 4, 2013

Benedict makes the cover of the New Yorker

Next Post

March 4, 2013 Benedict's parting gift to Brooklyn: historic church designated as co-cathedral

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category "Mad Men" 9/11 advent All Things New Amazing video amazing videos amazon america Anglicans Anti-Catholicism art ascension thursday ash wednesday Atheists baltimore Bible Bishops Blogging bonnie engstrom Books bridgeport Brooklyn Chaplains children christian art christmas Church Churches CNEWA Converts criticism Deacons Death Penalty easter eastern christian Eastern Christians Ecumenism education Education Eucharist Europe euthanasia Evangelization Exorcism Family Feasts Gay rights Good Friday Great links Great Moments in Journalism Hanging with the saints heather renshaw Hispanic Catholics Hispanics History homelies Homilies Humor Hymn of the Week Immigration indianapolis Inspiration Interfaith news ireland Jesus Jews Journalism Judaism lent Liturgy logos Marriage Mary Media Medical news Mental health Middle East Monks Movies Music Muslims My world and welcome to it New Evangelization new york News Nuns Parenting Parish life peoria Persecution politics Politics Pope pope francis pope john paul Prayer Preaching Priests Pro-life Quote of the day radio rebecca frech ripp Ripped from the headlines rippred from the headlines Sacraments saints Scripture sex abuse Sex abuse crisis SEX ABUSE CRISIS TAGGED WITH: SEX ABUSE CRISIS The people in the pews the visitation project theatre This & that Thomas Merton Trappists TV Uncategorized uncategorized VATICAN Vatican vocation Vocations Voices & Views Women Worth a thousand words Writing Year of Faith year of mercy young people

Select a Month December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who prophesied against Tyre, predicting it would become a bare rock?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Daniel Amos Ezekiel Joel

Books by This Author Books by Deacon Greg Kandra

See All Titles »