One hundred and thirty-three cardinals are beginning centuries-old rituals to elect a successor to Pope Francis.

Catholic cardinals will sequester themselves behind the Vatican’s medieval walls for the start of a conclave to elect the ...

African outreach was among Pope Francis' legacies, observers say, with numerous visits and a message of mercy inspiring ...

Deepening unity among Catholics will be the greatest challenge facing the next pope, who will be elected as early as ...

And they will determine whether the adage "fat pope, thin pope" holds true or whether the next leader of the Catholic Church ...

On the eve of the conclave to elect the next pope, the world's smallest country, Vatican City, is engulfed in commotion as ...

As cardinals prepare for the largest papal conclave in history, battle lines are being drawn over the direction of the church ...

Catholic cardinals are gathering at the Vatican to elect the successor to Pope Francis, who died on April 21. Voting will ...

Black smoke from a chimney on the roof of the chapel will mark an inconclusive vote, while white smoke and the peeling of bells will signal that the 1.4-billion member church has a new leader. The ...

Ross Douthat, a Times Opinion columnist, hosted an online conversation with Michael Brendan Dougherty, a senior writer at ...

As a fireworks expert tests the Vatican's contemporary system for "holy smoke," Catholic cardinals mull their divergent ...