Conclave (Under the Fig Tree Part 52)

Pope Francis lies in state at the Vatican, and the Church, together with the Christian world, continues to grieve for the loss of its Supreme Pontiff. We experience both sorrow and joy. Sorrow that this servant of God is no longer with us. Joy that he can enter into his eternal reward.     Events will move quickly toward his burial on Saturday, and thereafter the conclave to elect the new Pope. While respect and reverence for the dead might preclude discussions on his successor (though Cardinals are already meeting at various times in various groups), it is also prudent to consider the future of the Church, a major factor of which is who will be its overall head as the Vicar of Christ. As we pray for the eternal repose of the soul of Pope Francis, we also pray for the eternal well-being of our Church.     The conclave, to begin 15 to 20 days after a Pope’s death, will be participated in by Cardinals eligible to vote, that is, under the age of 80, currently numbering 137. The conclave is held at the Sistine Chapel, where electors are secluded from the outside world, until a new Pope is elected (they eat and sleep at the Domus Sanctae Marthae within the Vatican). The election of a new Pope requires a 2/3 vote, done by secret ballot.

      For whatever it is worth, here is my prayer: That the Holy Spirit will touch the minds and hearts of the electors and inspire them to choose a holy man who will lead the Church back to conservative values and tradition, to what is authentically Catholic.

      More specifically, that the new Pope would:

• Root out modernism and heresy within the Church.

• Remove liberal/progressive prelates/clerics from the Vatican hierarchy, especially but not limited to sexual predators.

• Remove Freemasons from the hierarchy.

  
  

• Focus on proclamation of the gospel and the call to holiness, while being mindful of the poor and oppressed.

• Rein in LGBT within the Church, including LGBT Masses.

• Eschew any embrace of the zeitgeist, including gender and climate ideologies.

• Stop the assault on the Traditional Latin Mass, and actually encourage its

  
  

  spread.

• Drop the whole thrust of synodality, which is a waste of time and will only weaken the Church.

      There are very many more issues. One can see that a new Pope who intends to work at cleansing the Church will face much opposition, both inside and outside the Vatican and the wider Church. His very life would be threatened. But the Church is the body of Christ, with Jesus as head and the Pope as his Vicar. The Church is the Bride of Christ, and she must be holy.

      Pray intently for the Cardinals who would soon be at the Conclave. 

SALVE REGINA.