VATICAN CITY -- The temporary chimney atop the Sistine Chapel released a plume of white smoke on Thursday evening local time, signaling that the 133 cardinals working inside had reached a two-thirds ...

A seagull has gained viral fame for perching on the Sistine Chapel chimney during papal conclaves. The bird’s presence has inspired memes and social media fascination dating back to 2013. Though the ...

Catholic cardinal electors from six continents gathered Wednesday inside the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican for the 2025 conclave to select a new pope. After the first round of voting, black smoke was ...

Pope Benedict XVI's resignation sets in motion a complex sequence of events to elect the next leader of the Roman Catholic Church. The laws governing the selection after a pope's ...

The United States counts 10 cardinals among the 133 eligible to vote for the successor to Pope Francis, including two from the tri-state area. Only four of the American electors actively serve as ...

The process by which a new pope is elected has undergone numerous changes in the nearly two millennia that the Catholic Church has existed, with the current procedure a combination of ancient ...

There is no rule that cardinals electing a new pope vote a certain way according to their nationality or region. But understanding their makeup in geographic terms can help explain some of their ...

After being appointed Archbishop of New York, Timothy Dolan went on to become one of the most influential leaders in the ...