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Cardinals Move Toward Selection of New Pope Cardinals Move Toward Selection of New Pope
(about 7 hours later)
VATICAN CITY — The cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church moved deliberately but inexorably on Tuesday toward the selection of a new pope after the resignation of Benedict XVI, meeting for a third time for discussions and to hear speeches — both inspirational and informational. VATICAN CITY — Despite intense anticipation, the cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church marched toward the papal election at a deliberate pace on Tuesday, making clear they would not be rushed as they formulate their views on who should be the next man to lead the world’s more than 1 billion Catholics.   
Vatican officials said the Sistine Chapel, the traditional location of the conclave that chooses the pope, would close at 1 p.m. on Tuesday in preparation for the gathering of the cardinals who will elect Benedict’s successor. After two formal meetings on Monday and Tuesday morning, the cardinals decided to forgo an afternoon session Tuesday to allow more time for private talk and research. They said they would keep the same measured rhythm on Wednesday.
The starting date for the conclave is expected to be chosen in the next few days. “The cardinals wanted time to organize themselves according to their rhythm of reflection and the need for information,” the Rev. Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman, told reporters. “They can use the time they think best.”
So far, 107 cardinals under age 80 — and therefore eligible to elect the pope — have arrived in Rome. Eight more are expected. The unstructured time, Vatican experts said, may in fact be the cardinals’ most productive. Two-thirds of the cardinal electors do not live in Rome or come from far-flung dioceses and generally need more time to get to know each other and potential contenders for the papacy.
Scores of cardinals who are over 80 are also taking part in preliminary meetings, called general congregations, in the Paul VI hall straddling the border between the Vatican City state and Italian territory. The meetings began on Monday, four days after Benedict, now called pope emeritus, went into seclusion in the papal summer residence at Castel Gandolfo, outside of Rome, as his resignation came into effect at 8 p.m. on Feb. 28. The slow pace, some Vatican experts speculated, may work to the benefit of candidates from outside Italy who may be intent on cleaning up widely reported instances of corruption within the Vatican bureaucracy, rather than those candidates who run Vatican business already, and who might want to move more quickly.
On Monday, the Rev. Raniero Cantalamessa, who holds the title of preacher of the papal household, gave a religious address to the cardinals, who are sworn to secrecy. “For some, they want more discussion,” Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, who leads the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, said at a later briefing. “Others are a little more impatient.”  Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley, the archbishop of Boston, said the prelates were not in a hurry to break up for the conclave. If they go in unprepared to vote, he said, many cardinals worried that the conclave “will drag on.”
The Vatican’s rules on papal transition stipulate that the cardinals hear two such meditations. The contents were not released. The timing of the conclave, the secret gathering when voting for the next pope will take place, was still not set but definitely on the cardinals’ minds. They asked that Benedict’s Feb. 22 order allowing the conclave to begin sooner than normal be read aloud. Normally it takes place 15 to 20 days after the death of a pope.   
Father Cantalamessa drew criticism three years ago in the midst of a round of sexual abuse scandals in Europe with a Good Friday address in which he compared outrage at the scandals to anti-Semitism. The cardinals are also expected to hear reports on Vatican finances and diplomacy. Meanwhile, cardinals under 80 and thus eligible to vote were still trickling in to the meetings, even though Benedict XVI made public his intention to resign on Feb. 11 and exited his office, and the Vatican, on Thursday.
The gatherings, called the general congregation, began with 103 of the 115 voters, grew to 107 on Monday and reached 110 by Tuesday. Father Lombardi said he was not sure what was behind the delays, but cited the case of Cardinal Bechara Boutros Raï, the Maronite patriarch from Lebanon, who reported staying behind to attend a long-scheduled meeting of bishops before landing late Monday.   
The prelates’ work is being shepherded by the dean of the College of Cardinals, Angelo Sodano, the former No. 2 to Benedict and Pope John Paul II before him. Under his leadership, they agreed to hold a public prayer service in St. Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday evening and sent a “telegram” expressing their gratitude to Benedict at Castel Gandolfo, the papal summer home where he is staying for the next few months.   
In one sign that the conclave is coming closer, workers on Tuesday closed off to tourists the location of the vote, the Sistine Chapel. They will erect a wooden platform to protect the floor, install the stoves used to generate the black or white smoke indicating pope or no pope and set up the rows of tables and chairs used by the red-hatted prelates in the rounds of voting.    
Scores of cardinals who are over 80 are also taking part in the general congregation in the Paul VI Hall straddling the border between the Vatican City state and Italian territory. During the two hour session on Monday, the Rev. Raniero Cantalamessa, who holds the title of preacher of the papal household, gave a religious address to the cardinals, who are sworn to secrecy. (Father Cantalamessa drew criticism three years ago in the midst of a round of sexual abuse scandals in Europe with a Good Friday address in which he compared outrage at the scandals to anti-Semitism.)
The Vatican’s rules on papal transition stipulate that the cardinals hear two such meditations, one in the congregation and one at the start of the conclave. The contents were not released. The cardinals are also expected to hear reports on Vatican finances and diplomacy.
The pre-conclave gatherings will offer the cardinals a chance to make a case for the kind of pope they want, and to size one another up at coffee breaks and later over dinner.The pre-conclave gatherings will offer the cardinals a chance to make a case for the kind of pope they want, and to size one another up at coffee breaks and later over dinner.
All have emphasized in interviews over the past week that they want a prayerful pope who can effectively transmit the Catholic message.  Some 33 cardinals had made short speeches on a first-come, first-served basis on Monday and Tuesday, Father Lombardi said, on a “broad range” of topics. On Monday, they concerned the “activity of the Holy See” and of various departments and their relationships with bishops, the “renewal of the church in the light of the Second Vatican Council” and the needs for a “new evangelization.”
No afternoon sessions were planned for Tuesday and Wednesday, the Vatican said, a sign that the cardinals wanted more free time to meet informally.

Reporting contributed by Laurie Goodstein.

Nuances of what they seek are already emerging. Some say they want a pope capable of reforming the bureaucracy of the Vatican, which has been hit with accusations of corruption in the past year. Others suggest a pope must come from the Third World, where Roman Catholicism is more vibrant than Europe. Still others want a pope with a strong governing hand.
Cardinal Francis George of Chicago suggested that questions may arise among the cardinals about a secret report by three senior cardinals on corruption and leaks within the Vatican bureaucracy, or Curia, that was ordered by Benedict and consigned to his successor.
The three authors of the report are present at the congregation and will be available to answer questions from those who want more insight and information about the contents of the secret dossier.
“I imagine that as we move along, there will be questioning of the cardinals involved in the governing of the Curia to see what they think has to be changed,” Cardinal George said. “Anything can come up.”
Cardinal George said the cardinals wanted to have a pope before the start of Holy Week, which is Palm Sunday on March 24, but would not be rushed.
“We’ll take the time necessary to do the job well,” he said.
The Vatican’s media managers appear to be making an effort to be more open about what is by definition a highly secretive process.
Telepace, an Italian-based Catholic television station, showed the cardinals going into the hall live on Monday. The Vatican has promised daily news conferences.
“Perhaps they decided that it’s best to talk to the press rather than not talk to the press,” Cardinal George said.
At a Vatican news conference on Monday, reporters were shown clips of the prelates inside the hall, walking past heavily draped windows in a corridor, entering the assembly hall and taking their seats in the auditorium, chatting with each other and flipping through the book of conclave ritual with its green hard cover, known in Latin as the ordo rituum conclavis.
The cardinals sat in assigned seats to make it easier to keep attendance and keep track of who speaks, said the Rev. Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman. Interpreters, sworn to secrecy, will render their comments into English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.
Much of Monday’s session, which began at 9:30 a.m., was taken up with each man walking to the front table for the personal oath. At 11 a.m., they took a half-hour break. “It was an important moment for personal contacts, for exchanges at a more particular level,” Father Lombardi said. Several cardinals spoke during a brief session, but mainly about logistical matters.
“As a start, it was very positive,” Father Lombardi said.