VATICAN CITY
Religion News Service
David Gibson | Mar 7, 2013
VATICAN CITY (RNS) Roman Catholic cardinals meeting here to pick a successor to Pope Benedict XVI said Thursday (March 7) that they still have not set a date for the actual conclave to begin, and while that decision could come any day, a lot of people are wondering what is holding them up.
Benedict announced his intention to resign nearly a month ago, on Feb. 11, the resignation took effect on Feb. 28, and most of the cardinals have been in town for more than a week. So what’s the delay?
The problem, in short, stems from the arcane structure of the papal election process, which forbids cardinals from campaigning (overtly) for the top office while a pope reigns – or even when he leaves office. More importantly, the process does not allow for any real vetting or lobbying during the prayerful silence of the conclave balloting itself.
As a result, the precious days between the time a pontiff leaves office and the moment the 115 cardinal-electors enter the Sistine Chapel provide virtually the only opportunities for them to sound out colleagues and size up potential candidates, and that’s what’s happening now during the daily meetings known as the General Congregations.
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