Here’s Your Crash Course on the Conclave with Patrick Madrid:
So, the conclave has officially kicked off, and Patrick Madrid is here with an explanation on how the Church chooses the next Pope. 😇
🪑 What’s Sede Vacante Anyway?
Patrick starts with a holy vocabulary lesson: sede vacante means “the chair is empty”… and not just any chair. We mean THE Chair of Peter. 🪑It’s the time between popes, and yes, that chair has biblical symbolism. Patrick beautifully ties this back to Matthew 23 and the Chair of Moses, where Jesus points out the authority behind the chair.
Also, if you’ve ever heard of “sedevacantists”: those are the folks who claim the Church hasn’t had a real pope since like…1958. Patrick shuts that down gracefully but firmly.
Super-Secret, High-Stakes Catholic Voting
-The conclave starts 15–20 days after a pope dies or resigns.
-The cardinals are locked in tight: no phones, no leaks!
-Everyone involved has to take an oath on the Gospels to keep their mouths shut.
-Voting is by secret ballot only… no raising hands or waving flags.
The cardinals vote up to four times a day:
✅ If someone gets 2/3 majority, and he accepts…there will be white smoke, and we have a pope!
❌ If not? Black smoke, quick break, more voting.
After 33-34 rounds, they can switch to a simple majority; basically, “let’s wrap this up.”
The Room of Tears: No, Really 😭
When a cardinal finally accepts the papacy, he steps into the Room of Tears.
Why the tears? Because the weight of the world just landed on your shoulders. And also… you’ve got to change clothes into a papal cassock. They’ve got small, medium, and supersize popes covered.
Then it’s time for that epic balcony moment, when the Cardinal Deacon comes out and says:
“Habemus Papam!”: We have a Pope!
Cue the cheering, the praying, and the “Wait… who’s that?” text messages. 📱✝️
🕰️ A 2,000-Year Tradition in Motion
Patrick wraps things up by reminding us: this whole process dates back nearly two millennia. The formal conclave system started in the 1200s, but the Church has been choosing popes since the days of Peter.
It’s not just politics or ritual; it’s divine providence, history, and grace, all wrapped into one sacred drama that literally changes the world.
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