so, what happens after the pope dies? is there another one that will arise out of the woodwork or this on the last one? does anyone know? I heard he's the last one.
they get all the candidates in a big room in some fancy building in rome to choose the pope. whoever wins the bozo buckets contest wins and is the enw pope. looks like were gonna need a nother one soon. and if theres a tie, they fight to the death.
Man, I hope it's a caged match this time. Popemania MCCXLIII was just too dull... I expect more from Vatican pay-per-view!!! j/k of course I do not know how a successor Pope is chosen.
Replacing a deceased Pope is a fairly routine process. The more tricky question is what happens if John Paul II simply becomes too incapacitated to function as Pope.
They just let him sit there, leaning back and forth, with a dude on either side to push him back into position until he finally does die. I can't remember the last pope who QUIT. Maybe that female pope, in the middle ages, who gave birth to a baby during a parade. (She had dressed as a man and posed as a preist to get to the Vatican.) I mean, if he won't quit and becomes incapacitated, what will happen? Rampant, uncontrolled birth control usage by errant Catholics?
There's this new innovation, It's called the Search Engine, here. From Yahoo and Time Magazine: How will the next Pope be chosen?Virgil San Antonio, Texas Dear Virgil:The next Pope will be chosen in the same time-honoured way that has been used for centuries. An article from Time.com outlines the process. First, the death of the current Pope will be verified by the Camerlengo, the head of the Sacred College of Cardinals, who follows specific procedures, such as the breaking of the papal ring and seal. The Pope is buried and nine days of mourning follow. Fifteen to 20 days after the Pope's death, the Cardinals meet to elect the next Pontiff. The election, known as a conclave, is held in a sealed and secure part of the Sistine Chapel. Only cardinals under the age of 80 vote, and secret written ballots are used. The Camerlengo and three assistants count the ballots. Except in special circumstances, a papal candidate must receive two-thirds of the vote plus one to be elected the next Pontiff. Four ballots are taken each day, two in the morning and two in the afternoon, until a vote is successful. The ballots are burned after each vote, and if the vote is unsuccessful, a substance is added to the fire to produce black smoke. Thus, black smoke indicates to the waiting crowd that the voting continues, while white smoke signals that a new Pope has been chosen. When a candidate has been chosen, the dean asks him if he accepts the papacy. If he does, he is appointed Bishop of Rome and is announced. Then he appears on the balcony of the Vatican. While any Roman Catholic adult male is technically papabile (i.e., able to be elected Pope), for centuries only Cardinals have been elected. For a preview of some of the likely successors to Pope John Paul II, read this article.
A Polack, a Jew and two black guys walk into the Vatican one day... .. and one of them is made Pope! Hehe.. well it could actually happen. Its kinda funny how they say there is only one 'young guy' in the running for Popehood.. and he is 54 years old.. thats the 'Kid'! They said he has little chance because he is far too young and inexperienced with only 30+ years in the biz lmao! That College of Cardinals.. I dont think you could find more Doctorates and Degree's in any other room but the Nobel Conventions. I will be sad to see this Pope pass away though.. he was pretty good for a Pope. Funny guy, good attitude and really brought a lot of good vibes throughout the world. Hope they dont vote in some asshole after this.
Yes, testes are required, and verified ever since the one woman pope snuck in. Now, the cardinals actually take a peak up his gown to confirm he's carryin.
What happens if he goes senile and decides to take a seat on the throne of good ole' saint peter? Hmmm. An interesting question for papal infalibility...
One thing you can be sure of - whoever suceeds JP II will probably just continue his policies. Thats because he's been in office so long that the Curia now consists of 'yes men'. Those on the same wing of the church as this present pope. So I don't think we'll see a great reformer, someone to enact the de-centralization of power etc spoken of in Vatican II, someone to bring the church into the 21st century, but more dull conservatism.
