Religious studies expert says latest Vatican conclave most open election for Pope in long time

• Voting has begun to elect the new Pope, with black smoke spotted this morning, signifying a new Pope was not chosen.
• Professor Peter Lineham expects the process to be wrapped up by Friday night.
• During the 2013 conclave, Pope Francis was elected after five rounds of voting.

A New Zealand religious studies expert suggests the conclave will wrap up by Friday in the most open papal election for some time.

Conclave, the process for choosing the new Pope, began yesterday when the 133 elector cardinals were locked into the Sistine Chapel, in Vatican City, to debate key issues.

Early this morning, black smoke emerged from the chapel’s chimney, signifying that a new Pope had not been chosen.

The conclave is being held in the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City. Photo / Beata Zawrzel / NurPhoto via Getty Images

Massey University professor Peter Lineham told Newstalk ZB the new Pope would be chosen from the group of cardinals.

“Each cardinal has a small piece of paper on which they can write the name of one of their number who they think should be Pope,” he said.

“There is a total blackout because they do not want cardinals talking on their cellphones to the media.

Peter Lineham, a professor of history at Massey University, is a religious studies expert.

“They keep doing that four times a day until they have a Pope.”

During the 2013 conclave, Pope Francis was elected after five rounds of voting.

The longest conclave came in the 13th century, when it took three years to elect Pope Gregory X.

Lineham said the cardinals would be looking for someone who could manage the global church and efficiently run the Vatican.

“Technically, the Pope is a monarch. A kind of King of the Church,” he said.

“If you can’t keep the wheels of the Vatican turning, keep raising money for the Church, the whole thing will collapse.

“That is effectively why Benedict resigned in 2012. He proved incapable, even incompetent, at running the Vatican Bank, and then all the sexual abuse scandals. He just couldn’t do it.”

Among the electors at this year’s conclave are Cardinal John Dew, former Archbishop of Wellington.

There are also two cardinals from the Pacific Islands – Cardinal John Ribat from Papua New Guinea and the recently appointed Cardinal Soane Patita Paini Mafi from Tonga.

Lineham said Pope Francis appointed at least two-thirds of the cardinals.

“He wanted the things he cared about to be reflected in the cardinals. He also had a big think about the representation of the worldwide Church,” he said.

Lineham said the Popes of the past 50 years have turned into global figures.

“They are really spectacularly public about travelling all around the world.

“Because of that, we can assume they are really important figures. Although they have no formal power, [there are] 1.4 billion Catholics.”

He estimated the cardinals will have come to a conclusion by Friday night.

“It may take one more vote than Francis, but people pretty quickly get realistic.”

Lineham said this was the most open conclave in a long time.

“Because of all these new cardinals. There will be people from the south who want another person out of the Italian European domination of the past thousand years,” he said.

“I find it very difficult to read, let alone the conservative v liberal debate.”

Top contenders

High-profile cardinals considered front-runners include Pietro Parolin, an Italian who serves as the Vatican’s secretary of state and is known for his diplomatic skills.

Peter Turkson, a Ghanaian known for relatively liberal views on social justice and human rights, could also be considered, as could Philippine-born Luis Tagle, an advocate for enhanced inclusivity. Turkson would be the first African Pope, if elected, and Tagle the first from Asia.

On the other end of the political spectrum, Raymond Leo Burke, a one-time archbishop of St Louis and an ardent critic of Francis, is also seen as someone who could make the cut. Burke would be the first ever US-born Pope if he were to be named Francis’ successor.

David Williams is an Auckland-based multimedia journalist who joined the Herald in 2023. He covers breaking news and general topics.,