People worldwide watch St. Peter's Square for white smoke from the Sisten Chapel. Once the smoke comes out, what happens next? Yes, the cardinal electors have chosen a new pope, but there's a process ...

A new film depicting a fictitious Pope who struggles to adjust to his new role and eventually resigns is dividing Catholic opinion in Italy. “Habemus Papam,” which opened in cinemas across Italy this ...

The history of the white smoke, which indicates that the cardinals have elected a new successor of St. Peter, is ancient. In 1274, at the Second Council of Lyons, Pope Gregory X, in a document titled ...

Editor’s Note: This review was originally published during the Cannes Film Festival. “Habemus Papam” opens in limited release on Friday. “Habemus Papam” (“We Have a Pope”) is stuck somewhere between ...

Latin remains the official language of the Vatican, and there are many phrases that the wider world only hears around the time that a new pope is elected. Even the word conclave, the secret assembly ...

The new pope's first name is actually announced in Latin (this is the Vatican, after all), so if you want to be fully prepped, our friends at Catholic News Service have prepared a list of all the ...

At around 12:20 ET this afternoon, shortly after white smoke began issuing from the sacramental chimney of the papal conclave, the legend on the lower third of Fox News’ screen shifted from the ...

There have been just seven papal elections in the last 100 years, with more than a quarter-century passing between the election of Pope John Paul II in October 1978 and that of his successor, Benedict ...

When a new pope is elected, there are two signs that mark that historic moment: the white smoke (fumata bianca in Italian) erupting from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel and the formula habemus papam ...