The leader оf the Roman Catholic Church іn England and Wales has stated that he definitely will not be the next pope, but he іs looking forward tо the “intimidating” task оf choosing Pope Francis’s successor.
Following the death оf Pope Francis, the next pope will be selected by the College оf Cardinals, who will gather for the tradition known as the conclave.
Cardinal Vincent Nichols will vote alongside more than 100 other cardinals, but almost missed out on the vote as he is only a few months away from his 80th birthday, the age limit for voting rights.
The Archbishop of Westminster, who was born in Merseyside, said that he thought it would “pass me by” until he heard that the Pope was seriously ill, and then he thought, “Oh Lord, this is going to come my way.”
The Conclave Process and the Role of the Cardinals
The conclave traditionally begins after a two-week mourning period, with the College of Cardinals gathering in the Sistine Chapel to cast a series of votes to choose the next pope.
In theory, any baptized man can be elected as pope, but a cardinal is usually selected. There are currently 252 cardinals, and while all can participate in the debates on who should be chosen, only the 135 who are under 80 years old are eligible to vote.
Cardinal Nichols, who leads six million Roman Catholics in England and Wales, told BBC North West that he “never thought” he would be voting because Pope Francis “didn’t show many signs of slowing down” and seemed to be recovering from double pneumonia.
Cardinal Nichols’ Personal Reflections and the Future of the Papacy
However, he downplayed any suggestion of remaining in the Vatican as the next pope himself. “I’m coming home,” he said. “You can be sure of that.”
The 79-year-old archbishop shared that he had met Pope Francis several times during high-level meetings in Rome, but there are two particular memories that have stayed with him.
“One particularly has never left me,” he recalled. “He said to me: ‘From the moment of my election as Pope, my peace has never left me.'” Despite the pressure of all he has to deal with, he has lived close to God.
Cardinal Nichols also reminisced about their last meeting two years ago, where he gave Pope Francis a copy of a book from an author. “I gave him the book and said the author was ‘very keen that you might have this,'” he said. “He came back after lunch with a handwritten card and a copy of one of his own books for me to give as a return gift. That was quite astonishing.”
After Pope Francis’s funeral on Saturday, Cardinal Nichols will join his fellow cardinals to vote for the 267th pontiff, who will lead the estimated 1.4 billion Catholics around the world.
He admitted that the prospect of voting for the next pope was “quite intimidating frankly.” He added that he believes the cardinals will do their “best work once the doors of the conclave have been shut” because, at that point, there will be “a peace and a prayerfulness between us.”
“I know I have got to get myself together and be a little nuanced to all the political maneuvering and Paddy Power’s bets and all that and say ‘actually, this is a group of men trying to discern the will of God,'” he said. “That’s the only thing that matters.”
