Inside The Vatican

Welcome to America magazine’s Conclave Podcast. Our editors are on the ground in Rome covering the conclave to elect the next pope. 

In today’s episode from Rome, the team discusses:

Final preparations for the conclave, including additional meetings for the cardinals

President Trump’s A.I. pope image

Covering the conclave for secular media, with NPR’s Scott Detrow

The quirky procedures and protocols of the conclave, with Religion News Service’s Thomas Reese, S.J.

This episode features:

Ashley McKinless, executive editor and co-host of America’s “Jesuitical” podcast

Zac Davis, director of digital strategy and co-host of America’s “Jesuitical” podcast

Scott Detrow, weekend host of “All Things Considered,” and a co-host of the “Consider This” podcast.

Thomas Reese, S.J., senior analyst at Religion News Service

Sign up for America’s subscriber-exclusive “Conclave Diary” daily newsletter and get all of our extensive coverage at: ⁠⁠AmericaMagazine.org/Subscribe⁠⁠

Links from the show:

⁠⁠Conclave: Everything you need to know about electing a new pope⁠⁠

⁠⁠‘God is not mocked’: US Catholic leaders criticize Trump’s AI pope meme⁠⁠

⁠⁠The conclave is a referendum on synodality⁠⁠

⁠⁠Interview: Cardinal Müller on if Pope Francis was a heretic and what he wants in the next pope⁠⁠

⁠⁠The pope is not the point⁠⁠

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Welcome to America magazine’s Conclave Podcast. Our editors are on the ground in Rome covering the conclave to elect the next pope. 

In today’s episode from Rome, the team discusses:

The security measures being taken at Casa Santa Marta, where the cardinal electors will stay during the conclave, including lock inspections and sealed windows

The history and recent rise of betting on who will be the next pope, as well as Fantasy Football-style apps for building your conclave team

The influence of the Synod on Synodality for the conclave—and what the result of the conclave might mean for the future of synodality

This episode features:

Sebastian Gomes, America’s executive editor of audio and video

Colleen Dulle, co-host of America’s “Inside the Vatican” podcast

Ashley McKinless, executive editor and co-host of America’s “Jesuitical” podcast

Anna Rowlands, a professor of theology at Durham University

Sign up for America’s subscriber-exclusive “Conclave Diary” daily newsletter and get all of our extensive coverage at: AmericaMagazine.org/Subscribe

Links from the show: 

The conclave is a referendum on synodality

Over $10 million in bets placed on who will be the next pope

Vatican guesthouse secured and sealed ahead of secret papal election

Interview: Cardinal Müller on if Pope Francis was a heretic and what he wants in the next pope

Hong Kong’s Jesuit Cardinal Chow on the conclave, the next pope and Francis’ legacy

How will the next pope strengthen safeguards against sex abuse?

Pope Francis and the future of Catholic moral theology

Is it time for the second Latin American pope?

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Welcome to America magazine’s Conclave Podcast. Our editors are on the ground in Rome covering the conclave to elect the next pope. 

In today’s episode from Rome, the team discusses:

The latest conclave news, including the installation of the chimney of the roof of the Sistine Chapel and how many cardinals have arrived in Rome

The cardinals have asked Catholics to pray for them and the conclave. What exactly should we be praying for? And should we be scandalized by the intermingling of politics and spirituality?

This episode features:

James Martin, S.J., America’s editor at large and founder of Outreach

Colleen Dulle, co-host of America’s “Inside the Vatican” podcast

Zac Davis, director of digital strategy and co-host of America’s “Jesuitical” podcast

J.D. Long García, senior editor at America 

Sign up for America’s subscriber-exclusive “Conclave Diary” daily newsletter and get all of our extensive coverage at: AmericaMagazine.org/Subscribe

Links from the show:

Vatican firefighters install a chimney on the roof of the Sistine Chapel for the conclave

With five days before the conclave, all but four cardinal electors are in Rome

The prayer Rome needs right now: Come, Holy Spirit.

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Welcome to America magazine’s Conclave Podcast. Our editors are on the ground in Rome covering the conclave to elect the next pope. 

In today’s episode from Rome, the team discusses:

Cardinal Beniamino Stella’s stunning attack on Pope Francis in Wednesday’s general congregation meeting of the College of Cardinals

The “election” of a new bishop in mainland China—while the chair of St. Peter is empty

Papabile: How do conclave watchers come up with their lists of the next pope (and should we trust them?)

This episode features:

Sebastian Gomes, America’s executive editor of audio and video

Colleen Dulle, co-host of America’s “Inside the Vatican” podcast

Ashley McKinless, executive editor and co-host of America’s “Jesuitical” podcast

Zac Davis, director of digital strategy and co-host of America’s “Jesuitical” podcast

Sign up for America’s subscriber-exclusive “Conclave Diary” daily newsletter and get all of our extensive coverage at: AmericaMagazine.org/Subscribe

Links from the show:

Backer of Cardinal Parolin attacks Pope Francis’ push for lay involvement in church governance

The new pope: How journalists (and cardinals) come up with their list of candidates

Designers up in arms over Pope Francis’ tombstone

Despite the death of Pope Francis, auxiliary bishop elected in Shanghai

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Welcome to America magazine’s Conclave Podcast. Our editors are on the ground in Rome covering the conclave to elect the next pope. 

In today’s episode from Rome, the team discusses:

President Donald Trump’s choice for pope

The latest from the cardinal pre-conclave meetings

The question: Will the next pope be an Italian?

The unfinished business of Pope Francis’ papacy, including: synodality, fighting sexual abuse, reforming Vatican governance and an ecumenical trip to Turkey on the anniversary of the Council of Nicaea  

This episode features:

Sam Sawyer, S.J., America’s editor in chief 

Sebastian Gomes, America’s executive editor of audio and video

Colleen Dulle, co-host of America’s “Inside the Vatican” podcast

Ashley McKinless, executive editor and co-host of America’s “Jesuitical” podcast

Zac Davis, director of digital strategy and co-host of America’s “Jesuitical” podcast

Sign up for America’s subscriber-exclusive “Conclave Diary” daily newsletter and get all of our extensive coverage at: AmericaMagazine.org/Subscribe

Links from the show:

Cardinals say they are expecting a short conclave

Watch: Trump jokes he’d ‘like to be Pope’

Synodality—and ‘controversial’ issues—are here to stay: Takeaways from the Synod’s final document

The four signs of a truly synodal church

Pope Francis issues new rules for accountability and response to allegations of sexual abuse

Pope Francis’ new sex abuse rules are a revolution for the Catholic Church

Vatican to consider classifying ‘spiritual abuse’ as new Catholic crime

With Pope Francis’ reform of the Roman Curia, nine years of work is coming to fruition

Podcast: Pope Francis’ Roman Curia reform, explained

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Welcome to America magazine’s Conclave Podcast. Our editors are on the ground in Rome covering the conclave to elect the next pope. 

In today’s episode, the team discusses:

- The controversial presence at the pre-conclave meetings of Cardinal Becciu, convicted of embezzlement, and Cardinal Cipriani, who was sanctioned by the Vatican for alleged sexual abuse

- The topics emerging in the cardinals’ secret meetings

- How “unity” and “clarity” are becoming buzzwords for reversing Francis’ style of governance

This episode features:

- Sebastian Gomes, America’s executive editor of audio and video

- Colleen Dulle, co-host of America’s “Inside the Vatican” podcast

- Gerard O’Connell, Vatican correspondent and co-host of America’s “Inside the Vatican” podcast

- Ashley McKinless, executive editor and co-host of America’s “Jesuitical” podcast

- Zac Davis, director of digital strategy and co-host of America’s “Jesuitical” podcast

- Sam Sawyer, S.J., America’s editor in chief 

Sign up for America’s subscriber-exclusive “Conclave Diary” daily newsletter and get all of our extensive coverage at: ⁠AmericaMagazine.org/Subscribe⁠

Links from the show: 

- ⁠What Pope Francis taught us: Church teaching finds clarity and power in acts of mercy⁠

- ⁠Cardinal Becciu will not participate in conclave following dispute over right to vote⁠

- ⁠As Cardinals Prepare to Elect a Pope, One Motto Is ‘Unity.’ That’s Divisive.⁠

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America Magazine’s editors are on the ground in Rome covering the conclave to elect the next pope. As part of the coverage, the team is producing a new podcast episode every day and releasing it on Inside the Vatican and Jesuitical.

In today’s episode, the team discusses:

- The funeral of Pope Francis

- The cardinal’s decision to start the conclave on May 7

- The College of Cardinals by the numbers

- How the conclave is (and isn’t) a referendum on Pope Francis’ pontificate

Hosted by Sebastian Gomes, America’s executive editor of audio and video, and featuring commentary from “Inside the Vatican” co-hosts Colleen Dulle and Gerard O’Connell, Jesuitical hosts Zac Davis and Ashley McKinless, editor in chief Sam Sawyer, SJ, editor at large James Martin, SJ, and senior editor J.D. Long García.

Sign up for America’s exclusive “Conclave Diary” daily newsletter and get all of our extensive coverage at: AmericaMagazine.org

Links:

- ⁠Conclave to elect a new pope will start on May 7⁠

- ⁠The three surprises of Pope Francis’ funeral⁠

- ⁠Mourners from around the world flock to Rome to say goodbye to ‘pope of the people’⁠

- ⁠Father James Martin: Don’t be afraid of the conclave—or the next pope⁠

- ⁠The papal transition: What you need to know⁠

- ⁠Cardinal Becciu will not participate in conclave following dispute over right to vote⁠

- ⁠The prayer Rome needs right now: Come, Holy Spirit.⁠

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Pope Francis—the first Jesuit and Latin American pope—has died.

As 1.4 billion Catholics begin mourning the loss of their pastor, and the world grieves one of its most prominent spiritual leaders, the Church remembers the pope who saw himself not only as the bishop of Rome, but as a parish priest to the whole world.

Now, a momentous process begins in Rome: the funeral, the mourning rites, and the election of a new pope.

In this special deep-dive episode of Inside the Vatican, host Colleen Dulle guides listeners through the rituals, rules, and hidden dynamics that unfold when a pope dies—from the certification of his death and the breaking of the papal ring to the solemn gathering of cardinals from around the world, and the quiet conversations that begin among them as they prepare to discern who will lead the church into its next chapter.

These cardinals will soon enter the conclave—the oldest surviving method of leadership selection in the world. Held beneath Michelangelo’s frescoes in the Sistine Chapel, the conclave is a spiritual event wrapped in secrecy and tradition. There, 135 cardinal electors, bound by oath and guided by prayer, will choose the next successor of Peter.

You’ll hear from:

Join us as we explore the sacred traditions and profound moments that shape a papal transition—and gain unique insight into the process of choosing the next leader of the Catholic Church.

Please support Inside the Vatican by becoming a digital subscriber to America Media.

Links for further reading

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“We’ve lost a friend on earth—and gained one in heaven,” says Gerard O’Connell as he mourns Pope Francis. In this special Inside the Vatican roundtable, recorded the day after the pope’s death, hosts Gerard O’Connell and Colleen Dulle join their producer, Ricardo da Silva, S.J., for a heartfelt conversation about the life, legacy and final days of a pope who changed the Catholic Church—and changed them.

Gerry, who perhaps knew Francis more as a friend than as pope—having shared a personal bond for more than two decades, and whose children were baptized by him—recalls the last time he saw him alive: Easter Sunday, riding through the crowds in his popemobile. “That’s my last image of him,” he says. Colleen reflects on witnessing the pope’s final Urbi et Orbi blessing from the balcony overlooking St. Peter’s Square and thinking, “He gave his all to the job,” she says. “Really left nothing on the table.” Ricardo remembers the pope’s joy at World Youth Day in Lisbon and the line that has stayed with him: “‘Todos, todos, todos!’ This is the church for all!”

Together, they reflect on the global impact of Francis’ papacy: his outreach to migrants and the poor, his advocacy for peace and the planet, and his reforms on synodality and inclusion. Colleen recalls the pope’s final request, recorded in his last testament: It would be “just a simple grave in the ground with a stone over the top that just says Franciscus on it. No extra ornamentation.”

Please support this podcast by becoming a digital subscriber to America Media.

Further reading

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Pope Francis died early this morning at 7:35 a.m. Rome time. He was 88. His death follows a 38-day hospital stay for double pneumonia that ended last month.

He died at Casa Santa Marta, the Vatican guesthouse where he lived. A brief service was held there, led by Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the camerlengo, who now oversees preparations for the next conclave.

In announcing the pope’s death, Cardinal Farrell said Francis “taught us to live the values of the Gospel with faithfulness, courage, and universal love, especially in favor of the poorest and the marginalized.”

The cardinals will meet tomorrow, April 22, to set the date of the funeral. Pope Francis will lie in state in St. Peter’s Basilica, likely beginning Wednesday, April 23.

We’ll have much more coverage in the days ahead. For now, you can find Gerry’s obituary and our ongoing reporting here:

Please support this podcast by becoming a digital subscriber to America Media.

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