The Cardinal Taking Over From Pope Francis

Last updated on: May 7, 2025 at 8:04 pm by Laurika Nxumalo

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The Cardinal Taking Over From Pope Francis 2025-05-07T20:04:33+02:00 Laurika Nxumalo

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Today, Wednesday 7 May 2025, the papal conclave begins. The Church needs a Pope who has the same vision as Pope Francis when it comes to the Synod on Synodality.

The iconic Vatican chimney emits white smoke, heralding a new Pope’s election. Global symbol of faith and tradition. | Image courtesy of stefanholm/Adobe Stock.

The Election of Pope Francis

Prior to the conclave in 2013, the Cardinals held a series of general congregations. Each Cardinal was given a chance to make a brief statement, which is known as an intervention. Each Cardinal will highlight the issues within the Church that he feels need attention – he will also give his view on the kind of man that would be suitable for the papacy.

In his very brief intervention, then Cardinal Bergoglio (Pope Francis) said,

“Thinking of the next pope: He must be a man who, from the contemplation and adoration of Jesus Christ, helps the Church to go out to the existential peripheries, that helps her to be the fruitful mother, who gains life from “the sweet and comforting joy of evangelizing.”

The Character of a Pope

Many treatises and books that have been written about Popes have usually focused on the extent and nature of a Pope’s authority and governance. Less has been written about the qualities a cardinal should possess in order to become a Pope.

Cardinal Vestments. Photo by Wikimedia commons

There’s an old saying about the election of a Pope – it is said that, “fat Pope follows a thin one” – this means that it is probable that the vision of the newly elected Pope will be the opposite of his predecessor or he might be more liberal than the one before him and vice versa. With regard to the conclave, it’s said that a cleric who walks into the conclave as a Pope will walk out as a Cardinal – this means that expectations are usually overturned; the one that people assume will be elected as the next Pope could be the last person on the minds of the electors and vice versa or the one who’s the last on the minds of the people could be the choice of the electors.

At the phase that the Synod on Synodality is, which is the implementation phase, as the Church we do not need someone who’s the direct opposite of Pope Francis because if the direct opposite is elected, the synodal process will not shape up to what it’s suppose to be – this would result in the loss of Pope Francis’s legacy.

The late Pontiff convoked the Sixteenth Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops (Synod on Synodality) in October 2023, with the theme “For a synodal Church: communion, participation and mission”. It is said that the Synod on Synodality became the culmination of Pope Francis’s papacy and it became the most important event within the Catholic Church since the Second Vatican Council.

In his address to the members of the Synod of Bishops on 6 October 2014 Pope Francis used the Greek word ‘parrhesiato‘ exhorting members to voice out their opinions “without polite deference, without hesitation. At the same time, one must listen with humility and welcome, with an open heart, to what one’s brothers say. Synodality is exercised with these two approaches.” Therefore, the Church needs a Pope who will be synodal.

Since the Catholic Church moved into Vatican II, it has been addressing, at length the equality and participation of women within the Church. In the history of the Church, no other popes have put their hearts into this topic than John Paul II and Benedict XVI, with their apostolic letters titled “On the Collaboration of Men and Women in the Church and in the World”, “Letter to Women“, and “On the Dignity of Women“; this includes Pope Francis with the Synod on Synodality. It would be a delight to see the next Pontiff continue with this effort.

Pope Francis greeting the crowd. Photo by Barbara Provenzano, Unsplash

A Pope who would continue shying away from ecclesiastical privileges just like Pope Francis would be a blessing to the Church. We still need someone who would live a simple and spiritual life like St. Francis of Assisi and Jesus. Pope Francis’s spirit of humility sparked a revolution that needs to continue into the future.

Popes John-Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis treated the Church’s young people with respect- they acknowledged them as capable and responsible individuals. In a world that teaches young people to give in to every whim, the three past Popes reminded young people that they are called to rise above the illusions of this world. The beatification of Carlo Acutis, demonstrated how Pope Francis gave young people the deserved recognition. The Church needs a Pope who’ll continue nurturing the faith of young people.

Carlo Acutis. Photo from official website

The word “pontiff”, is an English word derived from pontif in Old French and pontifex in Latin, actually means “bridge builder.” The next Pope has to continue building bridges between the past and the present, between believers and non-believers, and ultimately between the Creator and His creation.

Pope Francis with Rabbi. AI generated photo with Gencraft

The poor and the marginalized were at the center of Pope Francis’s heart, he understood that fighting over doctrine is not as important as modeling genuine Christianity – he made it clear that the correct Christian attitude towards today’s world is not fear but hope, hence proclaiming 2025 as the Jubilee Year of Hope.

We are hopeful that the Cardinals will choose a man who will be a beacon of hope, in and outside of the Church.