Conclave to begin work on electing new pope on May 7

Roman Catholic cardinals will begin their secret conclave to elect the new leader of the global Church on May 7, Reuters writes, citing its sources.

The date was decided during a closed-door meeting of cardinals at the Vatican, the first since the funeral of Pope Francis on Saturday. The agency’s source noted that an official announcement should be made in the near future.

As noted, the previous two conclaves, held in 2005 and 2013, lasted just two days. But Swedish cardinal Anders Arborelius said on Monday that the coming conclave may take longer, as many of the cardinals appointed by Pope Francis have never met each other.

Francis, pope since 2013, died aged 88 on April 21. His funeral on Saturday and a procession through Rome to his burial place at the Basilica of St. Mary Major attracted crowds estimated at more than 400,000.

Francis, the first pope from Latin America, tried to open up the often staid Church to some new conversations. He allowed debate on issues such as ordaining women as clergy and outreach to LGBTQ Catholics.