Habemus papam! White smoke from conclave, pope elected

Conclave Day Two. (Photo: Catholic Church England and Wales/ Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

By ANSA, Philippine News Agency

ROME – White smoke was emitted from the Sistine Chapel chimney on Thursday, meaning the cardinals in the papal conclave have elected a successor to Pope Francis in the fourth vote.

The 133 cardinal electors have thus chosen a new leader for the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics, whose identity will shortly be unveiled.

A two-thirds majority was needed, meaning the magic number was 89.

Francis died on Easter Monday aged 88 after 12 years at the helm of the Church.

The new heir to St Peter will now choose a name and retire to the sacristy of the Sistine Chapel, called the “Room of Tears,” because there the newly elected popes often give in to emotion.

Then, the cardinal protodeacon (Dominique Mamberti) will appear on the central loggia of St. Peter’s and pronounce the “habemus papam” (we have a pope).

Immediately afterward, the pontiff will appear on the loggia and impart the blessing Urbi et Orbi (to Rome and to the world).

The fact that it took cardinals only four votes to pick a new pope and the white smoke came out of the Sistine Chapel chimney after a day’s voting is “a clear sign of the unity of the Church,” Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi said in the Vatican press office.

The new pope was picked even faster than his predecessor Francis.