Voting for the Pope

No earlier than 15 days and no later than 20 after the death or resignation of a pope, all cardinals are summoned to Rome for a secret conclave. Conclave comes from the Latin word cum clave, meaning with key because cardinals are quite literally locked into the Sistine Chapel until they elect a new pope.

After all the cardinals are gathered inside the chapel, they begin deliberations. The cardinals are permitted no contact with the outside world during the conclave. Under threat of excommunication (being expelled from the church), no cardinal is allowed to discuss what happens in the conclave, in order to keep outside political influence to a minimal amount.

A two-thirds majority is needed in order to elect the pope. When voting for the pope, each cardinal writes a name on a piece of paper, then places it on a golden paten (plate). The paten is then turned upside down so the paper can fall into a chalice (cup) underneath. There is a lot of symbolism in this gesture, since the Catholic Mass uses those two objects for the bread and wine during the Eucharistic Prayer (more on that in the future).

If no person receives two-thirds of the vote, or if the nominee declines, then wet straw is mixed with the paper ballots and burned in the chimney. This combination results in black smoke, alerting outside observers that a majority has not yet been reached. There is one vote in the morning and another in the evening. This pattern continues every day for 21 elections. If there is still no supermajority by the 22nd election, a simple majority (50 percent plus 1) is used. Once someone wins the election and accepts the nomination, the ballots are burned without straw and white smoke is seen outside by observers.

Traditionally, papal elections took place in 3 different forms:

Acclamation: A name is presented and all the cardinals consent without using the secret ballot.

Compromise: If no one achieved a 2/3 majority after several ballots, then the entire College of Cardinals would choose a handful of electors to make the decision for the entire body. A unanimous vote was necessary to employ compromise.

Scrutiny: Each cardinal proposes a candidate and gave reasons for his qualifications before the individual cardinals cast their ballots. This is the only method that the papal conclave uses in the present era.

Once a cardinal receives a two-thirds majority vote, he is asked if he accepts the nomination. If he answers yes, he is then asked, "By what name are you to be addressed?" In 533, Pope John II became the first pope to change his name when elected. Since he was born with the pagan name "Mercury," he changed it to the more Christian name of John. However, after Sergius IV was elected in 1009, all subsequent popes would also change their names upon their election. Pope John Paul II was born Karol Wojtyla and Pope Benedict XVI was Joseph Ratzinger until his election.

Pope Primaries?

Unlike Western democracies, the government of the Catholic Church is more of a monarchy.
The Church is a hierarchy, in that the supreme authority is vested in one man, the pope. However, bishops control regional areas, known as dioceses, while priests run their individual parishes. Individual Catholics do not vote for their pope, bishop, or priest. The hierarchy operates more like a military chain of command than an elected democracy. In other words, no, there is no primary and no popular vote.

Other religions and Christian churches allow for the laity to participate in positions of authority from a little to a lot, but Catholicism has pretty much remained monarchial since the appointment of St. Peter. Laypersons are encouraged to participate in other ways,

You may have heard the phrase, "He who enters the conclave a pope, leaves a cardinal." The meaning? When a pope becomes sick or elderly (or dies), the College of Cardinals meet in a conclave to elect a new pope. During that time, rumors are rampant over who will be elected to take the Chair of St. Peter. Often, the media will name certain cardinals as the most likely candidates, called papabile (meaning pope-able in Italian). But usually, the papabile cardinals are almost never elected. So if a man enters the conclave as a favorite (or worse, acts as though he wants the job), then he'll leave as a cardinal because his fellow cardinals will choose someone more humble.

How the Pope Gets the Job

The College of Cardinals elects the pope. No, the College is not a university like Notre Dame or Boston College, but a gathering of all the cardinals from around the world (Think Electoral College in the United States). The Pope picks bishops to become cardinals and the cardinal's primary duty is to elect a new pope when the current one dies. Since popes tend to average a decade or more in office, cardinals really don't have much else to do besides wait for the pontiff to pass on.

Cardinals under the age of 80 are eligible to vote for a new pope. The number of electors is limited to 120, but Pope John Paul II appointed so many that the new limit became 137. However, considering that most cardinals tend to be older men, by the time John Paul II died the actual number of under-80, healthy, voting electors was lower than 120.

Theoretically, the College can elect any cardinal, bishop, priest, deacon, or layman from anywhere on Earth. However, if a layman is elected (very rarely, but it has been done), he need to become a deacon, priest, and bishop before he can assume office- since one of the Pope's duties is serving as the Bishop of Rome. Usually, they pick another cardinal since they know each other and there's only about 120 to choose from, rather than 3,500 bishops and 400,000 priests.

Sunday Off-Topic: Mass Variations

Every Introduction course always has its off-topic tangents, and Catholicism 101 is no different. On Sundays, we'll delve into some aspects of Catholicism that we might not otherwise get to. These areas are kind of up to my whim, but they will usually focus on unusual parts of Catholicism.

If you go to a Catholic parish on the west side of town one weekend, then spend another Sunday in an inner-city parish, you might notice some differences. One Mass may not be in English, or another might have a healing service at the conclusion. Both services are Catholic (meaning that they are sanctioned by the Pope) but they may be celebrated a bit differently.

Latin (Western) Church- Follows the ancient traditions of the Christian church in Rome from the time of Sts. Peter and Paul in the 1st century. As the capital of the Roman Empire, the Roman language (Latin) spread throughout Western Europe, bringing the church influences with it. Today, most parishes in Western Europe, Australia, and the Americas are considered the Latin Church. Even though the language used is no longer Latin, the prayers, gestures, etc., are all the same throughout. The Mass used is called the Nouvo Ordo (New Order) Mass, and is usually celebrated in the local language, although it can still be celebrated in Latin.

Eastern Catholic Church- Also in full Communion with the Vatican, it includes the Byzantine Church and other Eastern Orthodox Churches that were restored under the authority of the Pope in the 17th century. The seven sacraments are valid, but the Eastern Mass follows the tradition of the Orthodox Church, using the liturgy of St. John Chryostom. Eastern Catholics largely consist of the parishes in Eastern Europe and Asia.

Tridentine Mass- Masses are said only in Latin. These are usually parishes that have received permission to continue using the "old" mass that was the norm from the 16th century Council of Trent until the Second Vatican Council in 1963. In celebrating the Tridentine Mass, the priest uses the Roman Missal of 1962, which contains all the necessary prayers, readings, and liturgical directions. The priest also celebrates this Mass facing the altar, with his back to the assembled congregation. Pope John Paul II allowed these Masses to come back into use in 1988.

Charismatic Masses- Not really a seperate type of Mass, just New Order Masses celebrated in a different manner. Charismatic means sharing the gifts of the Holy Spirit, including healing or speaking in tongues. People who are unfamiliar with Charismatic Catholic Masses often mistake them for Pentecostal services, and indeed both denominations are devoted to the Holy Spirit and receiving its gifts.

Getting to Know the Pope

Every structured environment has a chain of command - governments, corporations, schools, sports programs - and the Catholic Church is no exception. In the coming weeks, we'll go over the church hierarchy and the duties of its members.

Best known to both Catholics and non-Catholics alike, the Pope in Rome is the supreme and visible head of the Church. The word pope is actually an English translation of the Italian word il Papa, meaning father, which leads us into another name for the Pope, Holy Father. Just as a Catholic priest is called "Father" in a spiritual sense, so also is the Pope called "Holy Father" by Catholics across the globe.

There are a lot of other papal titles, too: Successor of St. Peter, Vicar of Christ, Patriarch of the West, Supreme Pontiff, Roman Pontiff, Primate of Italy, Sovereign of the Vatican City, and Head of the College of Bishops. The most-used titles, however, are Holy Father, Pope, and Roman Pontiff. As if the title itself weren't enough, the Pope actually holds two different offices-he serves as both the bishop of Rome, and head of the entire Catholic Church.

Privileges of Membership

Being a member of a parish or diocese isn't really optional in the Catholic Church. Besides, it isn't beneficial to not belong to one. The Church tries to balance the individual with the community. Communal public worship has its place-specifically at Sunday Mass, but there is also something to be said for quiet solitude, holy hours, and mental prayer, as well.

Catholics don't have a choice when it comes to worshipping communally and personally. Catholic belief is that humans need both perspectives. This is part of the reason that the Cross is a symbol in the Church-the vertical bar represents a personal relationship with the Lord, which can only be done individually. The horizontal bar represents a person's obligation to also belong to the faith family of a parish and diocese. When Catholics are registered to a particular parish, they get more than envelopes for the collection basket. They also become members of a spiritual family that wishes to pray both with and for them. When Catholics are asked to be Godparents at a Baptism, only registered Catholics can get a confirmation from their pastor that they are in good standing. Whenever they are registered in a parish, they will be listed for prayer when they become hospitalized. And guess who receives visits from Catholic chaplains in the hospital? Unregistered Catholics tend to slip between the cracks, and are often unintentionally ignored.

Often, you will read that a person is a "former" or "fallen away" Catholic. You almost never read about former Muslims, Jews, Protestants, etc. Oh, they exist, to be sure. But, for whatever reason, various media personalities and authors are always fascinated by ex-Catholics. My guess is that the mystique and mystery of Catholicism help to fuel the curiosity that non-Catholics have towards it.

Four Marks of the Church - Apostolic (Continuity)

The final characteristic is one of connection to the past-particularly the Church's ability to trace itself back to the original apostles-12 men chosen by Jesus to assist him, and seperate from the 72 disciples who also followed him, but from a distance. The word apostle comes from the Greek apostello, which means to send forth, and the word disciple comes from the Latin discipulus, meaning student.

Jesus created the Church around the apostles, and this connection to the past is based on much more than just nostalgia. Every ordained priest, deacon, and bishop can legitimately trace their orders back to the original 12 apostles. That link is crucial because both credibility and authority can be traced back to the original ordinary men handpicked by Jesus to lead the church. Apostolic means that the Church has distinct ties to the original 12 apostles: Simon Peter, Andrew, his brother, James, John, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James the Less, Simon the Zealot, Jude Thaddeus, and Judas Iscariot, who would betray Jesus.