Sat Apr 26 10:30:00 UTC 2025: ## Hundreds of Thousands Mourn Pope Francis as Vatican Prepares for Papal Conclave
VATICAN CITY – Hundreds of thousands of mourners gathered at the Vatican Saturday to pay their respects to Pope Francis, who died Monday at age 88 following a stroke and heart failure. The funeral mass, held at 10 a.m. local time in St. Peter’s Square, marked the end of an era for the Catholic Church. However, the focus will swiftly shift to the selection of his successor.
Following the funeral, senior Church officials will convene to begin the process of electing a new Pope through a papal conclave. This process, overseen by the College of Cardinals, involves a period of deliberation on the Church’s challenges, followed by a secret election in the Sistine Chapel.
Cardinals will cast secret ballots, with four rounds of voting per day until a candidate receives a two-thirds majority. Black smoke from the Sistine Chapel chimney will signal a lack of consensus, while white smoke will announce the election of a new Pope. The senior cardinal deacon will then officially announce the new pontiff from St. Peter’s Basilica balcony. While conclaves typically last 15-20 days, their duration varies depending on the voting process, ranging from a single day to a historic near-three-year period. The world awaits with anticipation to see how long this critical process will take.
First Piper 