US EditionConclave: who are the likely contenders to succeed Pope Francis?
- Pope Francis died on April 21, 2025, at age 88 from a stroke and cardiac arrest in Vatican City, triggering a conclave beginning May 7 to elect his successor.
- Francis's death followed a 12-year papacy noted for humility, social justice advocacy, and Church reform, while the conclave process remains secretive with no official candidate list.
- The 133 cardinal electors from 71 countries will vote in the Sistine Chapel, with frontrunners including Pietro Parolin, Peter Erdo, Jean-Marc Aveline, and Pierbattista Pizzaballa representing diverse theological and regional backgrounds.
- Parolin, 70, Italy's Vatican Secretary of State, is seen as the leading candidate, while others like Tagle and Zuppi offer moderate, reform-minded options; some cardinals remain too conservative or liberal to gain broad support.
- The conclave's outcome will reflect tensions between Francis's progressive legacy and conservative factions, indicating possible shifts in Church direction amid global Catholic demographic changes.
89 Articles
89 Articles
"Let him be so humble": in front of Francis' grave, we pray for the next pope to be like him
While the cardinals have been gathered in a conclave since Wednesday to elect a new pope, the faithful are always rushing before the tomb of Francis, at the Basilica of St. Mary Major. With a prayer in mind for many: that the chosen one resembles him.
Competition and the campaign
There are many signs of speculation and anxiety on the stage in the conclave's prolegomena.Beyond the confrontation between Francis' legacy, a progressive agenda of openness, inclusion, with an emphasis on immigrants and disadvantaged, with the conservative wing demanding a return to doctrinal discipline, to close the door to divorced people, divergent sexual preferences and women.So far there are many more difficulties.The geographical, cultura…
Watching the Conclave from an Iowa Catholic landmark
WEST BEND, Iowa -- While the Conclave is underway to select a new Pope in Rome, Catholics in Iowa are following the media coverage, and praying. The West Bend St. Peter & Paul Church welcomes visitors frequently, due to the Grotto of the Redemption next door. The Shrine of the Grotto of the Redemption is the life's work of Father Paul Dobberstein. He had a serious illness, he prayed that if he survived, he would construct the grotto. He spent a …
Will the Conclave Elect a RADICAL Pope to Follow Francis?
The Conclave to elect the Catholic Church’s next Pope has begun. But will the next Pope be “conservative” and orthodox, will he follow in Pope Francis’ footsteps and be more friendly to leftist and globalist ideas, or will he be an “anti-Pope,” as some Catholics are claiming Francis was? Glenn speaks with LifeSiteNews co-founder and CEO, John-Henry Westen, who reviews the most likely candidates for the papacy and why he believes the “anti-Pope” …
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