By electing Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as Pope Leo XIV, the College of Cardinals has sent a subtle but unmistakable message: The Catholic Church will continue the reformist energy of Pope Francis, but with a fresh calibration toward tradition and doctrinal clarity. In Prevost, the cardinals have chosen both an insider and an outsider—someone rooted...
Author: Lito B. Zulueta (Lito B. Zulueta)
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Francis’ papacy, defined by mercy and compassion, was neither rigorist nor laxist
Within weeks of his 2013 election, Pope Francis shocked many by washing the feet of two girls—one of them a Muslim—during the Maundy Thursday liturgy at a juvenile detention center in Rome. This break from liturgical tradition signaled a papacy that would emphasize reform, pastoral openness, and, to some, a controversial departure from established norms....
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Press in denial: Recalling the 2005 conclave that elected Pope Benedict XVI
Even before I arrived in Rome in 2005 to cover the funeral of Pope John Paul II, the Eternal City was rife with talk on who would succeed him. If one would make a trope of the Colosseum and revive its fortunes but only in the imagination, it could stand for a betting arena, with a mob...
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Tagle as papal contender? Here are the pros and cons
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, the former archbishop of Manila, may be the strongest papal contender if Pope Francis resigns, like Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI did. But certain factors may affect his chances of getting elected in the next conclave. One factor is Tagle’s perceived closeness to Pope Francis, who appointed him in 2019 to head...