On Monday, Pope Francis passed away. His death kicks off a series of events in the Vatican which determine who will take his place as the next leader of the Catholic church.
Traditionally, this has been a detailed process marred by secrecy. It combines religious rituals, politics and ancient tradition, taking place behind the closed doors of the Sistine Chapel in Rome. And — to make it more fascinating — only a tiny group of select individuals get to see what actually goes down.
If you’re thinking, ‘wow, this sounds like a great premise for a film’, you’d be absolutely right.
In 2024, political thriller Conclave hit the film circuit starring Ralph Fiennes, Isabella Rossellini and Stanley Tucci.
Although the award-winning film is fiction (and wasn’t actually shot at the Vatican), the process it outlines is the same process which is about to kick off over the next month. It also highlights the individual cardinals struggles in balancing their desire for power and recognition, with their believed god-given duty to serve.
What happens after the pope dies?
Now that the death of Pope Francis has been confirmed by the Vatican, cardinals from all over the world will head to Rome. Each morning, they’ll engage in discussions about the next steps of the Catholic church.
After a 15 to 20 day mourning period, eligible members of the College of Cardinals — 252 cardinals appointed by the pope to serve the church for life — will gather inside the Sistine Chapel to vote in the next pope in a process called the papal conclave.
In the time period between the pope’s death and the next pope being chosen, the College of Carindals are put in charge of governing the church.
Who is eligible to become the next pope?
To be eligible to participate in the conclave, members of the College of Cardinals have to be under 80 years old. This means that as of 2025, only 135 members of the College of Cardinals are allowed to be in the running to become the next pope. According to Global News, 108 of those cardinals were appointed by Francis.
Otherwise, there are no other criteria. Despite every pope since 1379 being selected from the College of Cardinals, the rules only stipulate that any baptised Roman Catholic man can technically be elected pope.
What happens inside the Sistine Chapel during the conclave?
Once the conclave is called, the eligible cardinals are locked into the Sistine Chapel and completely disconnected from the outside world.
While they’re locked in making some big decisions, the gang is not allowed to bring in phones, have an internet connection, read any articles about what is happening outside, nor are they permitted to talk to anyone from outside those four walls.
To enable this, the cardinals take up residence at the Domus Sanctae Marthae guest house away from anyone not involved in the conclave.
Over the next few days, the cardinals will vote to select a new pope. For the pope to be declared, the cardinals must reach a two-thirds majority. Plus, cardinals cannot vote for themselves.
Each cardinal writes their vote on a piece of paper, approaches an altar and says: “I call as my witness, Christ the Lord who will be my judge, that my vote is given to the one who, before God, I think should be elected.”
Three chosen cardinals then read out the ballots, ties them up with thread and counts the votes. This continues until the group reaches a two-thirds majority.
The vote can be taken four times per day, and in between the cardinals spend time lobbying for themselves, others and the fate of the church.
What’s with all the secrecy?
Just like in Fight Club, what happens during the conclave stays in the conclave. Upon entry to the ancient process, the cardinals must take an oath to promise they won’t spill the tea.
If any of the cardinals do explain what went down, they can be excommunication from the red-hat wearing group.
According to Catholic Church historian Dr Miles Pattenden, the secretive church processes have become more hush-hush over the years.
“The idea is that God, through the Holy Spirit, guides the cardinals to choose the right man as pope to make God’s choice,” Dr Pattenden said, per the ABC.
“If everybody knows the nature of all the discussions … that rather undermines that as a play.”
See? Just like Fight Club.
What’s the deal with the smoke?
Naturally, the selection of the pope is a huge deal, and as the conclave is happening, thousands of people gather around the chapel and the Vatican in the hopes of catching a glimpse of the new holy appointment the moment a decision is made.
However, as the conclave members are not permitted to communicate with the outside world, there is another way the cardinals can alert the public when a new pope has been selected.
Each day the conclave continues without a selection being made, black smoke is sent out through the chapel’s chimney. Once the pope is chosen, white smoke is sent out, alerting the masses of a new pope and era for the church.
The chosen cardinal must publicly accept the honour of the supreme pontiff and choose a name that they wish to be called, which often implies the direction they’d like to bring the church in.
For example, Pope Francis’ real name was Jorge Mario Bergoglio. He chose Francis after Francis of Assisi, a 13th-century mystic and poet known for his riches to rags story.
Does Australia have any cardinals?
Yes, we currently have one cardinal. Mykola Bychock is a Melbourne-based bishop who became the youngest member of the College of Cardinals in 2024.
According to the ABC, he is currently the highest-ranking Catholic and the first Aussie cardinal since the disgraced cardinal George Pell, who faced child sex abuse charges before his convictions were overturned by the High Court of Australia in 2020.
What happens now?
While the conclave hasn’t begun yet, there are already some front-runners for the big job. There’s 70-year-old Italian Pietro Parolin, who has been the Vatican’s secretary of state since 2013.
Luis Antonio Tagle, 67, from Manila, Philippines, is another frontrunner who has long been thought of as Francis’ favoured successor due to his progressive agenda. If chosen, he would be the first asian pope.
Peter Turkson, 76, from Ghana is also in the running. According to The Guardian, he feels strongly about the climate crisis, economic justice and poverty, but is very traditional in other church traditions such as marriage and homosexuality.
Other front-runners include Péter Erdo, 72, from Hungary, Matteo Zuppi from Italy, 69, José Tolentino Calaça de Mendonça, 59, from Portugal and Mario Grech, 68, from Malta, to name a few.
Ultimately, there’s a whopping 135 members who can be chosen, so only time will tell!
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