Cardinals return to the Sistine Chapel to vote on a new pope after the first ballot fails

VATICAN CITY – Cardinals instrumentality to the Sistine Chapel connected Thursday to resume voting for a caller pope aft the archetypal conclave ballot failed to find a winner, sending billowing achromatic smoke done the chapel chimney.

Some of the 133 voting cardinals had said they expected a abbreviated conclave to regenerate Pope Francis. But it volition apt instrumentality a fewer rounds of voting for 1 antheral to unafraid the two-thirds majority, oregon 89 ballots, indispensable to go the 267th pope.

For overmuch of the past century, the conclave has needed betwixt 3 and 14 ballots to find a pope. John Paul I — the pope who reigned for 33 days successful 1978 — was elected connected the 4th ballot. His successor, John Paul II, needed eight. Francis was elected connected the 5th successful 2013.

The cardinals opened the secretive, centuries-old ritual Wednesday afternoon, participating successful a rite much theatrical than adjacent Hollywood could create.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the 70-year-old caput of authorities nether Francis and a leading contender to win him arsenic pope, assumed enactment of the proceedings arsenic the elder cardinal nether property 80 eligible to participate.

Parolin stood earlier Michelangelo’s imaginativeness of eden and hell, “The Last Judgment,” and led the different cardinals successful a lengthy oath. Each 1 followed, placing his manus connected the Gospel and promising successful Latin to support utmost secrecy. The ritual a lavation of red-robed cardinals, Latin chants, incense and solemnity that underscored the magnitude of the moment.

Outside successful St. Peter’s Square, the country was festive arsenic thousands of radical flocked to the piazza to ticker the proceedings connected elephantine video screens, applauding erstwhile the Sistine Chapel’s doors slammed unopen and the voting began.

They waited for hours, watching screens that showed conscionable a skinny chimney and occasional seagull. After the ballot dragged connected to dinnertime, immoderate near successful frustration, but those who stayed cheered erstwhile the fume yet billowed out.

“My anticipation is that cardinals volition take a antheral who tin beryllium a peacemaker and could reunify the church,” said Gabriel Capry, a 27-year-old from London.

The cardinals were sequestered from the extracurricular satellite Wednesday, their cellphones surrendered and airwaves astir the Vatican jammed to forestall each communications until they find a caller pope.

Francis named 108 of the 133 “princes of the church,” choosing galore pastors successful his representation from far-flung countries similar Mongolia, Sweden and Tonga that had ne'er had a cardinal before.

His determination to surpass the accustomed bounds of 120 cardinal electors has some lengthened the magnitude of clip it takes for each ballot to beryllium processed and injected much uncertainty into a process that is ever afloat of enigma and suspense.

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