More and more cardinals are speaking out about their expectations and predictions regarding the election of the new pope, which will begin on May 7th at 4:30 p.m. While of course all these guesses and analyses must be taken with a grain of salt, considering that the outcome of conclaves has historically been quite unpredictable, they may reflect a general sentiment among the scarlet-robed electors.
Gregorio Rosa Chavez, Salvadorian cardinal, auxiliary archbishop of San Salvador, told Italian Il Giornale that he was certain the new pontiff would be elected by May 9th. He also shared that “all cardinals, in their heart, have already a list” of candidates. He also opined that “the [desired] direction” of the new papacy “is clear.” Cardinal Chavez also shared that he has five names on his personal list, which includes “two Italians.” (The most frequently mentioned names are those of Pietro Parolin, who served until recently as the Vatican’s secretary of state, and Matteo Zuppi, the 69-year-old archbishop of Bologna.)
Sharing a similar sentiment, Algiers’ archbishop—Franco-Algerian cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco—told La Repubblica that in his view the conclave will not be long, and the new pope “will be no Francis,” rather a person “of consensus” who will bring peace and calm to a “shaken” church.
Commentators also voice the opinion that the Catholic Church needs a leader who will stand firm against progressivism. In an April 28th commentary published on Brussels Signal, Konstantinos Bogdanos opined that
The faithful need a conservative titan, not another diplomat chasing applause from secularists
and declared that “Cardinal Péter Erdő of Hungary stands out as a conservative pillar, his canon law expertise and experience under communism forging a leader unafraid to uphold tradition. His leadership of European bishops and ties to Orbán’s defiant Hungary make him a prime choice to rally Christendom against secularism and Islam’s rise.”
