What’s next for the Catholic Church after Pope Francis’ death?

ATLANTA — The process of selecting the next Holy Father after Pope Francis’ death is set to begin any day now.

The College of Cardinals will sequester and vote. Channel 2’s Candace McCowan spoke to an Emory University professor about what is different for this conclave.

Dr. Susan Reynolds is a professor of Catholic studies at Emory’s Candler School of Theology.

Pope Francis, even in death, left his mark on the selection of the next Holy Father.

She says the cardinals that Pope Francis installed are a group unlike any group of cardinals before them.

“He actually installed about 80% of the cardinals who will be voting on the next pope,” she said. “He appointed men who are from areas that have never been a position of leadership before in that capacity, so when we look to the future and ask, ‘Who’s next? What’s next?’ We genuinely don’t know because the who’s who in the room is different than it’s ever been.”

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The cardinals have been meeting for housekeeping and gathering for mass since arriving at the Vatican after the pope’s death.

It’s not clear if the College of Cardinals will elect someone like Pope Francis or not.

But Reynolds believes the group will make a selection that represents the entirety of the church.

“The areas of most dynamism or most growth is the global south, Latin America, Africa, Asia, so when Pope Francis talks about going to the margins, in some ways he’s challenging us what we used to think of as the margins is now the center,” Reynolds said.

Once the conclave begins, cardinals will vote twice in the morning and twice in the evening until they make a selection.

It’s a process that could take days before we see white smoke billow out over the Sistine Chapel.

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