The eyes of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics are focused on the election of a new pope, as 220 cardinals from the Catholic Church gathered this morning to participate in the traditional pre-conclave mass in St. Peter's Basilica.
Mobile phone networks will be cut off throughout the Vatican starting at 3:00 PM, before the 133 cardinals empowered to choose the pope meet for the first session in the Sistine Chapel at 4:30 PM local time.
This extraordinary event not only raises curiosity about the name of the next pope, but also draws attention to the nature and complexity of this electoral process, and how long it may take before white smoke rises from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, signaling consensus on the name of the new pope.
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