Predicting the end result of the extremely secretive papal conclave is close to unimaginable as cardinals’ positions shift over successive votes and a few attempt to sport the system to affect the possibilities of their favoured – or least-favoured – candidates. Within the final conclave in 2013, few predicted that Jorge Mario Bergoglio can be elected as Pope Francis. In the meanwhile, hypothesis is specializing in these males to succeed him:
Pietro Parolin, 70, Italy
Seen as a reasonable “continuity candidate”, Parolin was near Francis. He has been the Vatican’s secretary of state since 2013, taking part in a key position in diplomatic affairs, together with delicate negotiations with China and governments within the Center East. He’s thought to be a dependable and trusted papal consultant by secular diplomats. In 2018, he was the driving pressure behind a controversial settlement with the Chinese language authorities on the appointment of bishops, criticised by some as a sellout to the communist regime. Parolin’s critics see him as a modernist and a pragmatist who locations ideology and diplomatic options above arduous truths of the religion. To his supporters, he’s a brave idealist and avid proponent of peace.
Luis Antonio Tagle, 67, the Philippines
Tagle, a former archbishop of Manila, can be the primary Asian pope, the area with the fastest-growing Catholic inhabitants. At one time he was thought of to be Francis’s most popular successor and a robust contender to proceed the late pope’s progressive agenda, however lately seems to have fallen out of favour. He has instructed that the Catholic church’s stance on homosexual and divorced {couples} is just too harsh, however has opposed abortion rights within the Philippines.
Peter Turkson, 76, Ghana
Turkson can be the primary black pope in centuries. He has been vocal on points such the local weather disaster, poverty and financial justice whereas affirming the church’s conventional positions on the priesthood, marriage between a person and a lady, and homosexuality. Nonetheless, his views on the latter have loosened and he has argued that legal guidelines in lots of African international locations are too harsh. He has spoken out on corruption and human rights.
Péter Erdő, 72, Hungary
A number one conservative candidate, Erdő has been a robust advocate for conventional Catholic teachings and doctrine. He would symbolize a giant shift away from Francis’s strategy. He’s extensively thought to be a fantastic mind and a person of tradition. Erdő was a favorite of the late cardinal George Pell who believed he would restore the rule of regulation within the post-Francis Vatican. In 2015, Erdő appeared to align himself with Hungary’s nationalist prime minister, Viktor Orbán, when he opposed Francis’s name for church buildings to absorb migrants.
Matteo Zuppi, 69, Italy
Appointed a cardinal by Francis in 2019, Zuppi is taken into account to be on the progressive wing of the church, and can be anticipated to proceed Francis’s legacy, sharing the late pope’s concern for the poor and marginalised. He’s (comparatively) liberal on same-sex relationships. Two years in the past, Francis made him the Vatican peace envoy for Ukraine, during which capability he visited Moscow to “encourage gestures of humanity”. Whereas there he met Patriarch Kirill, the chief of the Russian Orthodox church and Vladimir Putin’s ally. He has additionally met Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s president.
José Tolentino Calaca de Mendonça, 59, Portugal
Tolentino is without doubt one of the youngest potential successors to Francis, which might depend towards him – formidable cardinals could not wish to wait one other 20 or 30 years earlier than one other shot on the high job. He has attracted controversy for sympathising with tolerant views on same-sex relationships and allying himself with a feminist Benedictine sister who favours girls’s ordination and is pro-choice. He was near Francis on most points, and argues that the church should have interaction with trendy tradition.
Mario Grech, 68, Malta
Grech was seen as a traditionalist however started to embrace extra progressive views after Francis was elected in 2013. His supporters argue that his altering opinions present his capability for development and alter. He has criticised European political leaders who sought to restrict the actions of NGO ships and has expressed help for feminine deacons.
Pierbattista Pizzaballa, 60, Italy
Since 2020, Pizzaballa has been the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, a vital position in advocating for the Christian minority within the Holy Land. After Hamas’s assault on Israel on 7 October 2023, Pizzaballa provided himself as a hostage in change for kids who had been being held by Hamas in Gaza. He visited Gaza in Could 2024 after months of negotiations. He can be anticipated to proceed some facets of Francis’s management of the church, however has made few public statements on controversial points.
Robert Sarah, 79, Guinea
Sarah is a conventional, Orthodox cardinal who at one time sought to current himself as a “parallel authority” to Francis, based on a Vatican observer. In 2020, he co-authored a e-book with the then retired Pope Benedict defending clerical celibacy that was seen as a problem to Francis’s authority. He has denounced “gender ideology” as a menace to society, and has spoken out towards Islamic fundamentalism. Like Tagle, he might make historical past as the primary black pope in centuries.
Supply hyperlink
