Vatican city AFP PHOTO
VATICAN CITY — The Vatican on Saturday outlined the timetable for a conclave in the Sistine Chapel starting next week for a new leader of the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics after Benedict XVI’s resignation.
Here are the precise times for the papal election beginning on Tuesday:
— From 0600 GMT on Tuesday: The 115 “cardinal electors” move into the St Martha’s House residence inside the Vatican walls where they will eat and sleep cut off from the outside world for the duration of the conclave.
— 0900 GMT: Cardinals take part in a special “Pro Eligendo Romano Pontifice” (“For the Election of the Roman Pontiff”) mass in St Peter’s Basilica.
— 1445 GMT: Cardinals either walk or take a minibus in strict isolation through the Vatican gardens from St Martha’s House to the Apostolic Palace.
— 1530 GMT: Cardinals hold a procession through the Apostolic Palace from the Pauline Chapel to the Sistine Chapel as they chant the Litany of Saints.
— 1545 GMT: Cardinals swear not to reveal details of their deliberations on pain of excommunication. Any staff are ordered to leave the chapel with the Latin phrase “Extra Omnes” and a prayer is read before a first vote is taken.
— 1815 GMT: Cardinals recite vespers to conclude their first session.
— 1830 GMT: Cardinals return to St Martha’s House.
— 1900 GMT: Cardinals have their first conclave dinner.
Successive days of conclave will take place as follows:
— 0530 GMT – 0630 GMT: Breakfast at St Martha’s
— 0645 GMT: Departure for Apostolic Palace
— 0715 GMT: Mass in the Pauline Chapel
— 0830 GMT: Prayers and voting in Sistine Chapel
— 1130 GMT: Departure for St Martha’s
— 1200 GMT: Lunch
— 1500 GMT: Departure for Sistine Chapel
— 1550 GMT: Prayers and voting in Sistine Chapel
— 1815 GMT: Vespers in the Sistine Chapel
— 1830 GMT: Departure for St Martha’s
— 1900 GMT: Dinner
Smoke signals:
— Ballots will be usually burnt twice a day — following the two rounds of voting in the morning and two rounds of voting in the afternoon.
The puffs of black smoke indicating no election or white smoke indicating an election can be expected at around 1100 GMT and 1800 GMT.
— If there is an election in a first round of voting, however, the ballots are burnt immediately to produce the famous white smoke, which could happen at 0930 or 1000 GMT for the morning and 1630 or 1700 GMT for the afternoon.