Breaking: Francis Mulls Reform of Papal Election Process

The madness just never ends…

Breaking: Francis mulls Reform of Papal Election Process

UPDATES 08-NOV-2023:

• Synod dogma makes revolutionary Conclave reform credible (Daily Compass)

UPDATES 06-NOV-2023:

• Cardinal Ghirlanda says reports he is changing rules for electing new pope are ‘absolutely false’ (Life Site)
• Canon lawyer denies involvement in papal election reform, calling reports ‘a pure lie’ (Catholic News Agency)
• Cardinal Ghirlanda denies papal election changes under consideration (The Pillar)
• Vatican cardinal denies knowledge of conclave reform doc (Where Peter Is)

ORIGINAL POST:

Breaking news out of Rome: Jorge Bergoglio (‘Pope Francis’) is reportedly mulling a reform of the papal elections process, that is, an official change in how a Pope is chosen, especially by whom.

Here’s an overview of the potential changes:

• ‘Cardinals’ over the age of 80, who are already forbidden from voting in a papal election, would also be excluded from the pre-conclave general congregations, in which important discussions take place regarding the kind of person who should be chosen ‘Pope’
• The general congregations would no longer have plenary meetings but would be divided into synod-style smaller discussion groups
• The electorate would change: It would consist 75% of ‘cardinals’ under the age of 80, and 25% of religious and laity specially appointed by the ‘Pope’ before he dies

This information can be gleaned from a report published at The Remnant by the well-connected and highly reliable Diane Montagna:

The Remnant has learned that a Vatican document is currently under review by Pope Francis that would reform the papal conclave to exclude cardinals over the age of eighty from its preparatory phase, radically reshape the General Congregations, and potentially revolutionize who elects the Pope by having laity and women religious comprise twenty-five percent of the vote.

Well-informed Vatican sources have confirmed to the Remnant that a series of meetings have been held at Santa Marta since late spring between Pope Francis and Italian Jesuit canonist Cardinal Gianfranco Ghirlanda, with one specific goal: to reform Pope John Paul II’s 1996 apostolic constitution on the vacancy of the apostolic see and election of the Roman Pontiff, Universi Dominici Gregis.

Montagna provides more details in her post:

• Pope Francis Drafting New Document to Reform the Papal Conclave (The Remnant)

This breaking news has been confirmed independently also by The Pillar:

Pope Francis has delegated Cardinal Gianfranco Ghirlanda to develop draft revisions to the papal election process, in light of the approach to dialogue used during the synod on synodality, according to sources close to the Vatican’s Secretariat of State.

…

Senior Roman clergy have told The Pillar that there have also been rumors that Pope Francis has considered the idea of inviting lay people to participate in [the pre-conclave] general congregations, but The Pillar has been unable to confirm whether that idea has actually been seriously discussed in the Vatican.

…it is not clear when draft revisions might be presented to the pope for his consideration and approval, or if a contingent of cardinals has been consulted amid discussions on the subject. But according to a senior canon lawyer close to the Vatican, knowledge of the project is widespread in Vatican canonical circles, as is the role of Cardinal Ghirlanda.

Many more details can be found in The Pillar‘s full article:

• Pope Francis looks at ‘synodal reforms’ to papal election process (The Pillar)

Himself elected in 2013 in a conclave that is considered suspect even by many non-sedevacantists, Bergoglio has been trying to cause as much confusion and upheaval as possible.

“¡Hagan Lío!” — “Make a mess!” —Francis told the young at World Youth Day in Rio de Janiero in 2013.

He is leading by example.

Image source: Wikimedia Commons (Palácio do Planalto/Ricardo Stuckert; cropped)
License: CC BY 2.0 DEED