The universal church is on full display during the waiting-for-white-smoke period. Watchers who gather at St. Peter's Square ...

Francis-era reforms that saw a diverse group of cardinals join the mix make his successor nearly impossible to call.

The chimney on the Sistine Chapel is up, and voting to elect the next pope will begin on Wednesday afternoon, May 7. Here is ...

Experts say the process requires "two custom fireworks", smoke test rehearsals and Vatican firefighters on standby.

Four frontrunners have emerged as the most likely contenders known as papabile to succeed Pope Francis but at least a dozen ...

Catholic cardinals are eligible to participate in the conclave, but two have indicated they will not attend. Two of these cardinals are from the Tri-State Area -- Timothy Cardinal Dolan from the ...

A conclave is the centuries-old election of a pope that derives its name from the Italian “con clave” (with a key) to ...

The College of Cardinals celebrated the ninth and final Novendiales Mass for Pope Francis on Sunday, May 4, the third Sunday of Easter.

Santa Marta bis is born to host the excess cardinals. After the papal suite was cleared, which must remain sealed until the ...

But papal betting has a long history. Roman banking houses were taking bets as far back as 1503. Alessandro Damasceni Peretti ...

Cardinals enter the Sistine Chapel to elect the next pope, as betting markets buzz with shifting odds on potential papal ...

Robert Harris praises the secret process of electing Pope Francis's success, saying political parties could learn from it.