The Pope will be emphasized to reach the Catholic Church of Francis and the “perimeter” of the world, resulting in the most diverse collection of Church leaders in history to select the new Pope.
According to Mary Foreito, an expert on the Pope elections and a senior partner of the Catholic Association, it can be very well a much different set of preferences compared to the late pontf in the next pope.
Francis has selected about 80% of the 135 church leaders – called Cardinals – who will vote for the next Pope in the upcoming Pope Conclave.
The result will be that instead of dominating European or even western cardinals, the Conclave will have larger parties from areas such as Africa and Asia.
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A person placed a portrait of the late Pope Francis at Basilica de San Jose Day Flores, where he worshiped as a youth, after the announcement of the death of the Vatican, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Monday, 21 April, 2025. (Gustavo Garlo/AP)
“This would be the most diverse conclusion in the history of the church,” Foreito said.
But this diversity can make a departure of a departure by focusing some defined focus on Francis’ Ponten, such as their emphasis on the “Dharmasabha”, ie, the meeting of small groups around the world to discuss questions of theology and church practice.
Fiorito sees this next conclusion, which he said that will begin on May 5, as a question whether the next Pope will be a person who continues Francis’s legacy or converts the focus of the church on problems such as harassment and poverty, which are major issues in countries such as Nigeria, Pakistan and India.
According to a report by the International Religious Freedom Guard, in Nigeria alone, where about half of the population is Christian, 3,100 Christians were killed and 2,830 were abducted, 2,830 abducted. Open the door,
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Pope Francis gave his Sunday Angelus Ashirwad from his residence in Casa Santa Marta on 26 November 2023 in the Vatican City. (Vatican Media through Vatican Pool/Getty Image)
In this sense, Fiorito predicted that African cardinals, which now create an important polling block in the conclave, would play a major role in selecting the next Pope.
He explained that the African church has a very different set of preferences, which is shaped in large part by the realities of rapid development with acute oppression.
“We are worried about things like climate change, and they are worried about not closing and setting fire in a church,” he explained. “They are not sitting on these tables for 10 to discuss great ideas. They just want to ensure that their child arrives at school without shot and they can pay their rent this month.”
Along with this, there will be a desire to select a pope that will honor the African church as the same and who will stand against the “ideological colonial” from the west with concepts such as climate change, abortion and gender ideology.
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Ghana’s Cardinal Peter Kodvo Appia Turkson exchanged Christmas wishes with Pope Francis at Cleanmentina Hall in Vatican City on December 21, 2013. (Franco Origaria/Vatican Pool/Getty Images)
He said, “Cardinals in Africa are very sensitive to such ideological colonies, where they are not colonized in a traditional way, but the views of the West are coming and trying to change African culture with Western thoughts without listening to the first people,” he said.
Keeping this in mind, Foreito pointed to the Hungarian Cardinal Petar Erd, which is quite young to be selected at the age of 71 and is seen by many as “John Paul II-type personality”. He respects both the Pope Francis lineage camps as well as the African bishop.
Another candidate, Foreito, said, who possibly “can bridge the gap” among the different worlds is the American-born Cardinal Robert Prevost, who currently serves as the Chairman of the Pontennable Commission for Latin America. However, Fiorito said that the probability of prevost may be reduced if the cardinals “do not want to focus the world’s power in the United States.”
Foreito also predicted the issues of modernity versus tradition, which has written some of the most important controversies during Francis’ Pontifetat in the West, will also play a factor.
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Cardinals run in a procession for Sistin Chappell in Vatican at the beginning of the Conclave on 18 April 2005. (Osservatore romano through AP)
He said that amidst the general decline in faith in the West, there has been a significant change in the youth who embrace a traditional Latin mass in the youth who embrace more traditional forms of worship in the church.
“This is the place where 20-Somethings are going to mass,” he said. “In a world where there is too much crossness and vulgarity, you have something here which is timeless and just takes you to another world.”
Despite this, he said that the issue of traditional Latin mass “is” Ala Litejical issue which I don’t think is going to have a lot of impact. “
Fiorito said, unlike political elections, the next Pope selection is less about a set of issues or policies, but is more about man instead.
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Catholic Church cardinals participate in the election conclusion at Systin Chapel in Vatican on 18 April 2005. (Arturo Mari, Vatican Pool)
“I will not do this phrase in terms of issues, as we are talking about economy or migration. We are looking at individual men and asking ourselves, who can do the best service of the church at this time and who is the best person to take this international role?” He said.
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“The role of the Holy Father is to be the center of unity for the church in promoting messages and gospel,” Foreito said. “So, these individual people, their strengths, their weaknesses, their backgrounds, what limitations can they have. And then, in fact, very prayed, asking, what do the church need now in a new pope?”
“My feeling,” she left, “I think cardinals today need to see the church globally and not only in their own backyard, but also globally and saying, ‘Who is the man who can take the church forward in this new era?” ,
