
Moment When White Smoke Rose From Sistine Chapel, Crowd Roars as Cardinals Elect New Pope
A historic moment unfolded in Vatican City as white smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel, signaling the election of a new pope...
A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. Cardinals are chosen and formally created by the pope, and typically hold the title for life. Collectively, they constitute the College of Cardinals. The most solemn responsibility of the cardinals is to elect a new pope in a conclave, almost always from among themselves, with a few historical exceptions, when the Holy See is vacant.
A historic moment unfolded in Vatican City as white smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel, signaling the election of a new pope...
The 2025 papal conclave will be the largest in Catholic Church history, with 133 cardinals set to elect the successor to Pope..