Conclave - Thursday Update
Conclave News
No date was set. The fifth congregation (meetings of the cardinals during the pre-conclave stage) began in the morning with prayer and ended just after the noon hour. 152 cardinals were present, 114 of which are eligible electors. Two more cardinals arrived today, one, the cardinal from Warsaw, is an elector and took the required oath upon his arrival. The final cardinal elector Jean-Baptiste Cardinal Pham Minh Mânfrom of Vietnam had just arrived at the airport at the time of the press conference. So, the required personnel, if you will, are all here at last.
Hugo Chavez Remembered?
One rather perplexing question raised at today’s congregation was whether or not the College of Cardinals would be sending a letter of condolences to the government of Venezuela at the death of Hugo Chavez. Well, the answer (if anyone wants to know) was yes, the College would indeed, and Cardinal Angelo Sodano personally drafted the letter in the name of the College. So, at least that’s done.
The Actual Workings of the Pre-Conclave
The cardinals are spending every day here this week in pre-conclave discussions. There are no thematic guidelines set for these discussions, and they can include any number of issues affecting the Church in various countries (from persecution of Christians to poverty to ecumenism), which are cited in relation to the qualities and experience required of the man who will soon have to address these issues as pope.
The Remnant Online
