"We Have A New Pope"
By: Steve Sawyer | Source: Fox News Channel
April 19, 2005 12:57PM EST

VATICAN CITY — White smoke poured from the chimney atop the Sistine Chapel (search) in Rome, signaling that a new pope has been elected by the College of Cardinals. The announcement that German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger had been named the next pope followed less than an hour later. “My dearest brothers and sisters,” said Cardinal Jorge Medina Estevez from a balcony. "I announce to you a great joy. We have a pope!” Ratzinger, 78, has been the Vatican's chief overseer of doctrine since 1981. At about 6 p.m. local time, their eyes glued to the chimney, the crowd lingering in St. Peter’s Square (search) cheered, clapped, laughed and honked horns as the white smoke wafted out. At first, no bells rang, as they were expected to when a pope had been decided upon, so there was some initial confusion as to whether the cardinals had actually settled on a choice. But then the Sistine Chapel's big, old bell began tolling, signaling that the Vatican had chosen its next leader. The crowd went wild, waving flags and shouting in glee. The 115 red-robed cardinals charged with electing the man who will lead the Roman Catholic Church and follow the late Pope John Paul II (search) began their vote Monday. Earlier in the day, black smoke rose from the chapel. The next pope will be the successor to Pope John Paul II, who died April 2 at age 84. There was no immediate word on who the new pope was, but his election is historic since it is the first papal conclave of the new millennium. Crowds in the square chanted, "Viva il Papa!" or "Long live the pope!" when they saw the plumes of white smoke and heard the bell ringing. For the tens of thousands of people packed St. Peter's Square on Tuesday for a second day in a row to watch the narrow chimney atop the Sistine Chapel, the time between the smoke and the bells was an agonizing 15 minutes of uncertainty. People were saying "White!" and "Black!" and then some began to chant "It's white, it's white!" and a group of Brazilians started jumping up and down, pushing their fists in the air. "Habemus papam, habemus papam," said Daomario Barbalho, 26, from Natal, Brazil. At 5:55 p.m. Amy Turnipseed, 21, an American, said, "It looks really white, but I'm not sure." There was a brief flutter in the crowd when the bells rang at 6 p.m., but the cheers died down when they stopped ringing. Minutes later, they began in earnest and the crowd erupted. "Oh my gosh, this is insane," Turnipseed said. Some were surprised that the next pope was decided upon so quickly. The two morning ballots Tuesday followed an early Mass in the cardinals' high-security Vatican hotel. The prelates from six continents and 52 countries were to return to the chapel Tuesday afternoon for up to two afternoon ballots, with a new plume of smoke expected by late evening. On Monday evening, black smoke that initially looked light enough to throw even Vatican Radio analysts off-guard poured from the chimney, disappointing a crowd of 40,000 pilgrims anxious for a sign that the cardinals had settled on a successor. That first puff followed the conclave's initial vote. A quick decision in the first round of voting on Monday would have been a surprise. The cardinals have a staggering range of issues to juggle as they choose the first new pope of the 21st century — fallout from priest sex-abuse scandals, chronic shortages of priests and nuns, as well as calls for sharper activism against poverty and easing the ban on condoms to help combat AIDS. The next pontiff also must maintain the global ministry of John Paul, who took 104 international trips in his more than 26-year papacy. "Keep praying for the new pope," said 82-year-old Cardinal Luis Aponte Martinez of Puerto Rico, who was too old to join the conclave, open only to cardinals under 80 years old. The first conclave of the new millennium is being held amid unprecedented security, with the cardinals seated atop a false floor concealing electronic jamming devices designed to thwart eavesdroppers by cutting signals to cell phones or bugs. It is also the first time in more than a generation that crowds have been staring at the chimney for the famous smoke and word of a new pope. In that time, the church has been pulled in two directions: a spiritual renaissance under John Paul, but battered by scandals and a flock pressing for less rigid teachings. "It's very powerful to be in the place where St. Peter was martyred and to pray to the Lord for a worthy successor," said Brother Mateo Lethimonier, 30, a monk from Argentina in a light blue robe and sandals who was among those on the square. He said he was praying for the cardinals to find "the one who loves Jesus most, the one who represents the church best." "All the people here have something in common: the religion, of course, but also being a part of history. This is a part of history," said Adrien Asselin, 66, of Hawkesbury, Ontario, a retired art teacher who cut short a trip to South Africa to fly to Rome. Before the conclave began, one of the possible candidates — German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (search) — tried to set a tone of urgency, warning cardinals, bishops and others gathered in St. Peter's Basilica for a Mass that the church must stay true to itself. "We are moving toward a dictatorship of relativism which does not recognize anything as for certain and which has as its highest goal one's own ego and one's own desires," said Ratzinger, 78, who has been the Vatican's chief overseer of doctrine since 1981. "Having a clear faith, based on the creed of the church, is often labeled today as a fundamentalism," he said, making clear that he disagrees with that view. About five hours later, the electors walked in a procession into the chapel decorated with frescoes by Michelangelo. They bowed before the altar and took their places. For 30 minutes, each walked up and placed his right hand — with the special gold ring of the cardinals — on the Holy Book and again pledged never to reveal what will occur in the conclave. The penalty is severe: excommunication. Under conclave rules, four rounds of voting were being held per day beginning Tuesday — two in the morning, two in the afternoon — until a prelate gets two-thirds support: 77 votes. If they remain deadlocked late in the second week of voting, they can go to a simple majority: 58 votes. No conclave in the past century has lasted more than five days, and the election that elevated Polish Cardinal Karol Wojtyla to into the papacy as John Paul II in October 1978 took eight ballots over three days.