Papal conclave set to begin in Rome on Tuesday, March 12th
THIENSVILLE (WITI) --The Catholic Church could have a new leader as early as Tuesday, March 12th. That is when the conclave is set to begin in Rome -- and there are plenty of reasons for Wisconsinites to watch.
In Thiensville, at the Lumen Christi Church, prayer joined with anticipation on Sunday, March 10th.
"It's an exciting time, and it's a prayerful time," one parishioner said.
"I'm trusting in the Holy Spirit," another parishioner said.
Half a world away in Rome, preparations are underway for the conclave. Sunday, March 10th could be the final Sunday with no pope in charge, as Cardinals begin voting for a new leader on Tuesday.
Father Stephen Avella is both a Marquette professor and a priest. He explained why the world's attention is squarely on Rome.
"For Catholics, this is the Super Bowl. The pope is a visible head of 1.2 billion people on this planet. That's roughly about one-seventh of the planet who somehow have a relationship with him," Father Avella said.
There is a chance, following the white smoke, a pope with Wisconsin ties will emerge.
Cardinal Raymond Burke grew up in La Crosse. Cardinal James Harvey was raised in Milwaukee. Former Milwaukee Archbishop Timothy Dolan's name has also been dropped as a potential pope.
"Maybe we could call this the 'cheesehead conclave' for whatever it's worth. Cardinal Dolan is the hometown favorite. People would love to see him. I can honestly say I haven't a clue who will walk out there on the St. Peters Square. Hopefully by the end of this week, we hope," Father Avella said.
115 cardinals will go into the Sistine Chapel on Tuesday. One will eventually come out as pope when he receives two-thirds of the votes.
"This is our leader, and this is the person who will be representing the church for hopefully a good chunk of my life, and I care," Father Avella said.
According to oddsmakers in Las Vegas, the cardinal with the best shot of becoming pope is Italian Angelo Scola, although experts say it is probably not worth betting on.
Cardinals will vote once Tuesday, and then four times a day until a new pope is selected. No conclave has lasted more than five days since 1900.
For the first time in the history of the Catholic Church, an election of the pope is being conducted in a social media world. Many of the cardinals involved in choosing a new pope have their own Facebook pages and Twitter handles.
Several of the most prominent cardinals are regular tweeters: Cardinal Ravasi, Cardinal Dolan, Cardinal Scola and Cardinal O'Malley, to name a few.
However, just because the religious leaders are active online doesn't mean that's going to bring them extra votes in Tuesday's conclave.
"I don't think really it matters that much how many people follow an individual cardinal. You know, that's not going to get him extra votes in the College of Cardinals. I think they are looking primarily for somebody they think will be a good pope, which means somebody who agrees with them on the issues facing the church and the direction it should go in. If a person is involved in tweeting and Facebook it shows that they are trying to use these new methods of communication to get the message out. You know, and that's a plus - it's not a big enough plus to swing an election," Father Thomas J. Reese said.
The tweets and posts will be taking a break on Tuesday as the cardinals enter the secretive conclave.
Vatican officials have explained if any cardinal is caught posting online, they will be kicked out.