VATICAN CITY
Slate
By Abby Ohlheiser
Posted Monday, March 4, 2013
The Catholic church took on teeny tiny baby step towards picking a new pope today as 140-odd Catholic cardinals met at the Vatican for what was essentially the opening ceremonies of the papal election process.
All cardinals, even those over 80 who are therefore too old to vote for the next pope in the conclave, can attend the General Congregations during the period between popes, known as the sede vacante. All but 12 of the participating Cardinal Electors were at today’s meeting, according to the Vatican. The stragglers are expected to arrive, along with 60 or so other cardinals not yet present, either later today or tomorrow. Apparently, in the 45-minute meeting, the cardinals discussed but did not set a date for the beginning of the conclave, the secret meetings in which the electors pick the next pope. That date will likely be set once the electors arrive. And they’ll probably be in a hurry to start the process.
Thanks to a rule change by Benedict XVI, the conclave can begin pretty much once all the electors are present. Previously, the conclave began no sooner than 15 days after the end of the previous pope’s reign. But holy week begins March 24, and the traditional waiting period would have made it nearly impossible for the conclave to elect and install a successor by then.
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