Ballots are burned in the process, but the smoke seen by the world is created using another stove, the Vatican Information ...

Pope Francis, who presided over the Roman Catholic Church and its estimated 1.4 billion followers for 12 years, died April 21 ...

The late Pope Francis came to Washington, D.C., to speak to a Joint Meeting of Congress on Sept. 24, 2015. He wasn’t the ...

If no pope is chosen, the ballots are mixed with cartridges containing potassium perchlorate, anthracene (a component of coal ...

Smoke signals have occurred at mid-morning, noon, mid-afternoon and evening. The longest conclave took three years.

Maneuvering has already begun ahead of the Conclave that starts next week. If a compromise is found in the current talks, it ...

Pope Francis laid out guidelines for a simplified funeral before a conclave convenes at the Sistine Chapel to select his ...

A change in popes — through death or resignation — is a complicated process. These are the need-to-know terms — some of them ...

If no pope is chosen, the ballots are mixed with cartridges containing potassium perchlorate, anthracene (a component of coal tar), and sulfur to produce black smoke. But if there is a winner ...

Black smoke means the election of a new pope was inconclusive. White smoke means a new pope has been selected.

From conclave to “Habemus papam,” here’s what to know about the words and phrases that guide the process after a pope dies. By Jonathan Wolfe The transition from one pope to the next can be ...