The ‘Papabiles’ - six men who could become the next Pope following the papal conclave

“He who enters a conclave as pope emerges as a cardinal” goes the saying, so picking the likely winner of the papal election following the death of Pope Francis is fraught with difficulty.

In the upcoming conclave, the following are considered papal candidates or “papabile” – translated from the Italian “pope-able”:

Cardinal Mario Grech, from Malta

From the tiny island of Gozo off Malta, Cardinal Grech (68), the former Bishop of Gozo, has displayed a similar mindset to Francis in his addresses to Synods of Bishops in Rome. In a December 2018 interview, he said: “‘Black’ and ‘white’ still exist; but the grey area in-between has grown. It is in the grey areas that we must search. That’s why I said that I am wary of those priests, or Christians, who feel they already know all the answers. No one can make that claim. We all have to continue searching.”

He has been central, as secretary general of the Synod of Bishops, to the ongoing synodal process initiated by Pope Francis. He is also familiar with the Vatican, having served on the Roman Rota, and...
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