By Msgr. Charles Pope, EWTN News - In light of the current impasse regarding a border wall and the partial government shutdown, it is worth exploring a feature from Catholic history: the conclave. The Church, too, has had periods when political divisions were so deep that only drastic measures could secure a way forward… a conclave is an assembly of the College of Cardinals for the purpose of choosing a pope. The word “conclave” brings to mind a stormy period in the Church, especially in the 13th century, when political divisions were so deep that the cardinals could not come to a consensus on a pope.