VATICAN CITY — Roman Catholic cardinals chanted and prayed for divine guidance as they filed towards the Sistine Chapel on Tuesday to start a conclave to elect a pope who will face one of the most difficult periods in the Church's history. The 115 red-hatted and red-caped cardinals gathered in the Pauline Chapel and walked in procession along the frescoed halls of the Vatican's Apostolic Palace into the Sistine, where they could remain closeted for several days of balloting. “The entire Church, united with us in prayer, asks for the grace of God at this moment so that we elect a worthy shepherd for the entire flock,” a cardinal said in Latin as the procession began. They then chanted what is known as the “litany of saints”, asking more than 150 saints by name for help in making their choice of who should succeed Benedict XVI, who has withdrawn from public life after his surprise abdication last month. After the after the doors of the chapel were closed, the cardinals were sequestered inside to conduct their secret discussions. The balloting for the next pontiff will take place under the gaze of the divine presence represented through Michelangelo's fresco of the Last Judgment on the wall behind the altar. The solemn afternoon procession into the Sistine followed a morning Mass in St. Peter's Basilica where Angelo Sodano, an Italian who is dean of the cardinals, called for unity in the Church, which has been riven with intrigue and scandal, and urged everyone to work with the next pope. No clear favorite has emerged to take the helm of the Church, with some prelates calling for a strong manager to control the much criticized Vatican bureaucracy, while others want a powerful pastor to combat growing secularism. Italy's Angelo Scola and Brazil's Odilo Scherer are spoken of as possible frontrunners. The former would return the papacy to Italy after 35 years in the hands of Poland's John Paul II and the German Benedict; Scherer would be the first non-European pope since Syrian-born Gregory III in the 8th century. However, a host of other candidates from numerous nations have also been mentioned as “papabili” – potential popes – including US cardinals Timothy Dolan and Sean O'Malley, Canada's Marc Ouellet and Argentina's Leonardo Sandri. The cardinals will only emerge from their seclusion once they have chosen the 266th pontiff in the 2,000-year history of the Church, which is beset by sex abuse scandals, bureaucratic infighting, financial difficulties and the rise of secularism. Many Catholics are looking to see positive changes. — Reuters
