“Habemus Papam”Thoughts on the Election and Our New Pope
The Election of Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as the Next Pope with the New Name Pope Leo XIV
The Papal Conclave
When a Pope dies or resigns, the Sacred College of Cardinals governs the Church during the time of vacancy. The primary responsibility of these cardinals is to elect a new Pope. The election of a new Pope is done in what is called a Conclave. The word "conclave" comes from the Latin cum clave, meaning "with a key." The term reflects the practice of locking the cardinal electors inside a secluded space, now the Sistine Chapel, until they reach agreement on who will become the next Pope. “The Church has used the Conclave process for over 700 years, with modern rules codified by recent popes, most recently Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI.” The room was made very uncomfortable so that the exercise would be done speedily. A Conclave has approximately 120 cardinal electors, whose eligibility to vote or be elected is to be under the age of 80. Before the election, some private discussions would take to help shape the consensus around potential candidates. These discussions are informally known as papabile (those considered likely to become Pope).
Apart from casting votes, the Conclave is also “a spiritual event, grounded in prayer and carried out with elaborate ceremony.” The cardinals first gather at Saint Peter’s Square in Rome to pray and invoke the guidance of the Holy Spirit to direct them during the election process. At the beginning of the Conclave, all participants are required to maintain absolute secrecy and refrain from any communication with the outside world. The cardinals who are eligible for voting enter the Sistine Chapel and abide by the procedures for casting secret ballots. During the first day of the Conclave, they cast ballots once, and subsequently, two times a day, in the morning and the evening, until a new Pope is elected.
Two masters of ceremonies prepare and distribute ballot papers. The two masters of ceremonies, who are non-cardinals, are allowed into the chapel at the start of the session. “Then the names of nine voting cardinals are chosen at random: three to serve as 'scrutineers,' or voting judges; three to collect the votes of any sick cardinals who remain in their quarters; and three 'revisers' who check the work of the scrutineers. On the top half of the rectangular ballot is printed the Latin phrase “Eligo in Summum Pontificem” (“I elect as the supreme pontiff”), and the lower half is blank for the writing of the name of the person chosen.” The non-cardinals leave the chapel for the cardinals to cast their secret ballots. The process goes on as follows:
Each cardinal writes his choice on a paper ballot marked with the Latin phrase "Eligo in Summum Pontificem" ("I elect as Supreme Pontiff").
Ballots are folded and placed into a chalice, then deposited into a receptacle atop the altar.
Three cardinals designated as “scrutineers” count the votes aloud.
If no one receives a two-thirds majority, the process repeats.
Ballots from each session are burned in a special stove inside the chapel. To let the world know what’s happening, smoke rises from the chapel’s chimney:
Black smoke (fumata nera) means no decision has been reached.
White smoke (fumata bianca) signals that a new pope has been elected.
When the next Pope is finally elected, indicated by the white smoke from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, a senior cardinal will proceed to announce the results from the papal window to the waiting crowd at Saint Peter's Square. That was what happened on May 8, 2025, when Robert Cardinal Francis Prevost won the papal election and took the name Pope Leo XIV.
Before the public announcement, the dean of the College of Cardinals would ask formally: “Do you accept your canonical election as Supreme Pontiff?” When the elected cardinal accepts the results of the elections, he is asked to select a papal name. Then, he is led to the nearby Room of Tears, where he dons white papal vestments, prepared in various sizes. The room gets its name from the emotion often experienced at that moment - grief, awe, or humility, as the weight of responsibility settles in.
Then comes the Public Announcement from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica:
“Habemus Papam” – We have a Pope.
White smoke from the chapel chimney indicating we have a new pope!
The papacy of Pope LEO XIV as a Continuation of the Papacy of Pope Leo XIII
A priest, Fr Denis Tameh, explains why the new Pope chose the name Leo XIV. There had been thirteen other Popes who chose the name Leo, and this one is the fourteenth. Let us learn the reason for the choice.
“With the election of Pope Leo XIV, the Church finds itself at the threshold of a new chapter, one marked by both continuity and renewal. The very name he has chosen is not accidental; it is deliberate, symbolic, and rich with ecclesial significance. By taking the name Leo, the new pope invokes the towering legacy of Pope Leo XIII (1878–1903), a figure widely regarded as the bridge between the Church and the modern world. Leo XIII was a man of deep intellect and pastoral courage, whose long and influential pontificate left a lasting imprint on the life of the Church, particularly in three areas.”
A Pope of Social Doctrine
First, Leo XIII is best remembered for his monumental encyclical Rerum Novarum (1891), the foundational text of modern Catholic social teaching. At a time when industrial capitalism and Marxist socialism were destabilizing the social fabric, Pope Leo offered a third way: a vision of society grounded in the dignity of the human person, the rights of workers, the necessity of just wages, and the mutual obligations between labor and capital. In doing so, he positioned the Church not on the sidelines of social change, but at its heart, as a prophetic voice advocating justice and solidarity. By choosing his name, Pope Leo XIV signals a renewed commitment to the poor, the working class, and those on the social margins. In this, he appears to carry forward the pastoral trajectory of Pope Francis, who made the "Church of the peripheries" a central theme of his papacy.
A Champion of Scripture and Intellectual Renewal
Second, Pope Leo XIII was a tireless advocate for the scholarly study of Sacred Scripture. In his encyclical Providentissimus Deus (1893), he urged Catholic theologians and scholars to engage Scripture with both reverence and academic rigor. His encouragement of biblical scholarship planted seeds that would eventually blossom at Vatican II, particularly in the documents Dei Verbum and Divino Afflante Spiritu, which deepened the Church’s love for and engagement with the Word of God. Suppose Leo XIII prepared the Church intellectually and spiritually for the modern world. In that case, Leo XIV may be preparing her for the next frontier, an age of digital culture, ideological fragmentation, and existential searching. In this context, a renewed focus on Scripture, theological formation, and intelligent faith becomes not optional but essential.
An Augustinian Pope
Added to this legacy is another rich layer: Pope Leo XIV is an Augustinian. As a spiritual son of St. Augustine, arguably the Church’s most significant Father and theologian, he brings with him a tradition steeped in intellectual brilliance, pastoral sensitivity, and theological depth. Augustine’s own conversion story, his theology of grace, his passionate love for truth, and his profound understanding of the human heart make him an ideal patron for a pope seeking to engage the restless questions of today’s world with clarity and compassion.
Suppose Leo XIII led the Church into the modern age. In that case, Leo XIV may be called to lead her through the post-modern age, grounded in the riches of tradition, yet agile in dialogue with a world that is increasingly fragmented, skeptical, and hungry for meaning.
The Universal Call to Mission
Above all, the name Leo reminds us that the Christian faith is, by its very nature, a missionary one. Christ’s desire to save all people compels us to go out, to proclaim the Gospel, to witness with our lives, to care for the poor, and to challenge a world that often misunderstands our intentions.
A Pontificate of Promise
In Pope Leo XIV, we may be witnessing the emergence of a pontificate that honors the social conscience of Leo XIII, the prophetic courage of Pope Francis, and the theological depth of St. Augustine. If his name is any indication, this will be a papacy rooted in tradition, oriented toward the margins, and open to the questions of a new age.
May the Lord bless Pope Leo XIV with wisdom, courage, and holiness.
May his pontificate be fruitful, faithful, and filled with the joy of the Gospel.” In addition, I pray that, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother, Mary, he may work diligently, and through him, more people will come to the faith.
-Fr. Emmanuel Fale Lon