Black Smoke Signals No New Pope Elected
‘Black smoke streamed from the Sistine Chapel’s chimney Monday to signal that cardinals failed to select a new pope in their first round of voting, held just hours after they began their historic task: finding a leader capable of building on John Paul II’s spiritual energy while keeping modern rifts from tearing deeper into the church.
“It seems white. … No, no, it’s black!” reported Vatican Radio as the first pale wisps slipped out from the narrow pipe and then quickly darkened.
As millions around the world watched on television, at least 40,000 people waited in St. Peter’s Square with all eyes on the chimney, where smoke from the burned ballots would give the first word of the conclave: white meaning a new pontiff, black showing that the secret gathering will continue Tuesday.
In the last moments of twilight, the pilgrims began to point and gasp. “What is it? White? Black?” hundreds cried out. In a few seconds at about 8:05 p.m. it was clear the 115 cardinals from six continents could not find the two-thirds majority needed to elect the new leader for the world’s 1.1 billion Roman Catholics. Only one vote was held Monday.’
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