INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
next head of the Catholic Church, after sending up a second round of black smoke to signal they had again failed to elect a pope.The 133
cardinals began their secretive conclave in the 15th-century Sistine Chapel on Wednesday afternoon, seeking a successor to Pope Francis as
scheduled to have two votes on Thursday afternoon after lunch at the Santa Marta guesthouse, where they are staying.Sworn to secrecy, their
only method of communication is by burning their ballot papers to send up smoke through the chapel chimney, coloured black if they have no
proceedings.Take your timeOn Wednesday, the first day of the conclave, the black smoke came some three hours and 15 minutes after the
cardinals closed the doors of the Sistine Chapel.If no pope emerges in the two votes to come Thursday afternoon, the voting will continue
Friday, and for as long as it takes to find consensus.In 2005, Pope Benedict XVI was elected in four ballots over two days and Pope Francis
who travelled from Canada for the conclave.A central question is whether cardinals will choose someone in the image of Francis, who defended
the poor, migrants and marginalised around the globe, or someone more focused on defending Church doctrine.The charismatic Argentine
reformer died on 21 April, aged 88.No secrets revealedWhile voting within the Sistine Chapel, the cardinal electors, all those aged under
it to the altar, which is placed in a silver urn.After the ballots had been counted, they were burned in a cast-iron stove dating back to
Chemicals are added to a second, newer stove, connected to the same flue, which colours the smoke.While their procession into the Sistine
doors.The cardinals, who had to leave their phones behind, took an oath Wednesday not to reveal the secrets of the conclave, which was about
the pain of excommunication.DivisionsThe 2025 conclave is the largest and the most international ever, assembling cardinals from around 70
countries.There is no clear frontrunner to succeed Francis
The cardinals represent a range of progressive and conservative traditions within the Church.The challenges facing the 2,000-year-old
institution are clear, however.The new pope will need to tread carefully amid geopolitical uncertainty, while addressing deep fractures
scandal and, in the West, increasingly empty pews.Around 80 percent of the cardinals voting were appointed by Francis.More than a dozen
Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith.--Agencies
