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Authors: H. Paul Jeffers
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later with a grin that would earn him the nickname “the smiling pope,” the situation “began to get dangerous for me.”
“Cardinals Willebrands of the Netherlands and Ribeiro of Portugal, sitting on either side of him, leaned toward him. Whispered one: ‘Courage. If the Lord gives a burden, he also gives the strength to carry it.’ Whispered the other: ‘The whole world prays for the new Pope.’”
On the fourth vote, “no other name but Luciani’s was read out. There were a number of blank ballots…. But roughly ninety votes went to Luciani.” Ringing applause echoed in the chapel. “The chapel door was opened and eight conclave aides entered to accompany Jean Cardinal Villot, the church’s ‘Camerlengo,’ or chamberlain, to the flustered Luciani, who was still seated in his place under a fresco of the baptism of Christ. The Camerlengo, his face wreathed in smiles, asked the ritual question, ‘Do you accept your canonical election as Supreme Pontiff?’
“Luciani at first replied, ‘May God forgive you for what you have done in my regard.’ Then he gave his assent, ‘Accepto.’”
Burning ballots and chemically treated straw in a stove sent a puff of white smoke up a chimney, signaling to a throng in St. Peter’s Square that the Church had a new pope. Inside, Luciani announced the name he had chosen for himself as the new pope. He would be “loannes Paulus.” The crowd outside was told the name of their new pope was “John Paul.”
“After the singing of the ‘Te Deum’ of thanksgiving, the pontiff was escorted to the sacristy to don his temporary papal robes. He reappeared in a white cassock with a shoulder-length cape and a high white sash. Grinning happily, he took the throne that had been erected in front of the altar, and joyful Cardinals approached one by one to embrace him and to kiss the papal ring.”
“Rome did not get its first real look at John Paul until the next day, when 200,000 people filled St. Peter’s Square for the weekly Sunday noon blessing. John Paul spoke for seven minutes.…Let us ‘understand each other,’ he told the crowd. ‘I do not have the wisdom of heart of Pope John, nor the preparation and culture of Pope Paul. However, now I am in their place and must try to help the church. I hope you will help me with your prayers.’…
“The new pope, John Paul, gave a glimpse of his personal style with the plans for his Sept. 3 open-air accession ceremonies. At his direction it was not called a ‘coronation’ or ‘enthronement,’ but a ‘solemn Mass to mark the start of his ministry as Supreme Pastor.’ John Paul asked not to be carried on the usual portable throne but to walk in procession. Most significant, he did not wish to be crowned with the triple-decked, bee hive-shaped tiara. Instead, a pallium, the white woolen stole symbolizing his title of Patriarch of the West, would be placed on his shoulders….
“In his inaugural address to the Cardinals, John Paul pledged to carry forward the work of the Second Vatican Council, convened by Pope John XXIII in 1962 and concluded by Paul VI in 1965. He would, he said, put a ‘priority’ on a revision of the canon law codes.” It was immediately recognized that John Paul intended “a new style of papacy, more simple and less formal than many at the Vatican were used to. His first speech to the world, delivered from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, was personal and direct…. He asked Catholics to ‘have mercy on the poor new pope who never really expected to rise to this post.’ He joked about having to pick up the Vatican’s thick yearbook, the Annuario Pontificio , to study how the Roman Curia worked.”
“The new pope made no secret of the fact that he felt a bit intimidated by the church structure he was supposed to be running.…In public events he made connections with everyday Catholics by adopting a storytelling manner of preaching and bringing a parish atmosphere to the Vatican.
“Cardinals Willebrands of the Netherlands and Ribeiro of Portugal, sitting on either side of him, leaned toward him. Whispered one: ‘Courage. If the Lord gives a burden, he also gives the strength to carry it.’ Whispered the other: ‘The whole world prays for the new Pope.’”
On the fourth vote, “no other name but Luciani’s was read out. There were a number of blank ballots…. But roughly ninety votes went to Luciani.” Ringing applause echoed in the chapel. “The chapel door was opened and eight conclave aides entered to accompany Jean Cardinal Villot, the church’s ‘Camerlengo,’ or chamberlain, to the flustered Luciani, who was still seated in his place under a fresco of the baptism of Christ. The Camerlengo, his face wreathed in smiles, asked the ritual question, ‘Do you accept your canonical election as Supreme Pontiff?’
“Luciani at first replied, ‘May God forgive you for what you have done in my regard.’ Then he gave his assent, ‘Accepto.’”
Burning ballots and chemically treated straw in a stove sent a puff of white smoke up a chimney, signaling to a throng in St. Peter’s Square that the Church had a new pope. Inside, Luciani announced the name he had chosen for himself as the new pope. He would be “loannes Paulus.” The crowd outside was told the name of their new pope was “John Paul.”
“After the singing of the ‘Te Deum’ of thanksgiving, the pontiff was escorted to the sacristy to don his temporary papal robes. He reappeared in a white cassock with a shoulder-length cape and a high white sash. Grinning happily, he took the throne that had been erected in front of the altar, and joyful Cardinals approached one by one to embrace him and to kiss the papal ring.”
“Rome did not get its first real look at John Paul until the next day, when 200,000 people filled St. Peter’s Square for the weekly Sunday noon blessing. John Paul spoke for seven minutes.…Let us ‘understand each other,’ he told the crowd. ‘I do not have the wisdom of heart of Pope John, nor the preparation and culture of Pope Paul. However, now I am in their place and must try to help the church. I hope you will help me with your prayers.’…
“The new pope, John Paul, gave a glimpse of his personal style with the plans for his Sept. 3 open-air accession ceremonies. At his direction it was not called a ‘coronation’ or ‘enthronement,’ but a ‘solemn Mass to mark the start of his ministry as Supreme Pastor.’ John Paul asked not to be carried on the usual portable throne but to walk in procession. Most significant, he did not wish to be crowned with the triple-decked, bee hive-shaped tiara. Instead, a pallium, the white woolen stole symbolizing his title of Patriarch of the West, would be placed on his shoulders….
“In his inaugural address to the Cardinals, John Paul pledged to carry forward the work of the Second Vatican Council, convened by Pope John XXIII in 1962 and concluded by Paul VI in 1965. He would, he said, put a ‘priority’ on a revision of the canon law codes.” It was immediately recognized that John Paul intended “a new style of papacy, more simple and less formal than many at the Vatican were used to. His first speech to the world, delivered from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, was personal and direct…. He asked Catholics to ‘have mercy on the poor new pope who never really expected to rise to this post.’ He joked about having to pick up the Vatican’s thick yearbook, the Annuario Pontificio , to study how the Roman Curia worked.”
“The new pope made no secret of the fact that he felt a bit intimidated by the church structure he was supposed to be running.…In public events he made connections with everyday Catholics by adopting a storytelling manner of preaching and bringing a parish atmosphere to the Vatican.
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