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Catholic Answers: Papal Conclave: The Facts – Brown Pelican Society of Lousiana

Catholic Answers: Papal Conclave: The Facts

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By Catholic Answers, Staff, April 23, 2025

Even the average Catholic might be prompted to ask exactly how a conclave works. Here are the answers.

Cardinals are gathering in Rome to prepare to elect the next pope. They’ve scheduled Pope Francis’s funeral for this Saturday. The preparatory sessions for the next papal conclave have begun.

At a time like this, even the average Catholic might be prompted to ask exactly what a papal conclave is, and how it works. Here are the answers.

A papal conclave is the election process by which a new pope, the visible head of the Catholic Church, is selected.

Catholics believe that the pope is the vicar of Christ and successor of St. Peter, the visible leader of the universal Church, against which Jesus promises the gates of hell will never prevail (Matt. 16:18-19). After a pope dies or resigns, a papal conclave commences within three weeks to elect his successor. A conclave is the gathering of the College of Cardinals in which these papal electors choose the next pope. …

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