29/27
When Cardinal Lawrence is tasked with leading one of the world’s most secretive and long-running events, the selection of a new pope, he finds himself at the center of a conspiracy that could shake the very foundations of the Catholic Church. Many of the actions of Cardinal Lawrence and the rest of the cardinals during the film’s conclave process are true to the Catholic faith and centuries of tradition. After the pope’s death, his ring (called the Fisherman’s Ring) is removed and destroyed; this is to prevent it from being used to forge the papal seal on documents. The Vatican officially announces that the throne of the Holy See (the governing body of the Catholic Church) is vacant. The papal apartment is closed with a crimson ribbon and sealed with a papal wax seal. The College of Cardinals is sequestered in apartments (the Domus Sanctae Marthae, the House of St. Martha) to eat and sleep between votes. Finally, the windows and doors of the Sistine Chapel, where elections are held and ballots are cast, are darkened, closed, and locked to maintain the secrecy of the conclave. Some of the more recent real-life security measures are also shown: when the conclave that elected Pope Francis I met in 2013, the Sistine Chapel was searched for microphones and other electronic listening devices; identification cards were issued to all conclave servants because a journalist disguised as a servant was discovered during the conclave that elected Pope Benedict XVI in 2005; all members of the College of Cardinals were required to surrender their cell phones and other electronic devices; the Vatican City Wi-Fi network was temporarily shut down; and wireless signal jammers were installed in the Sistine Chapel. Ayendi is said to be the first African pope. The Roman Catholic Church has had three African popes: Victor the First (189-199 CE), Miltiades (also known as Melchiades, 311-314 CE), and Gelasius the First (492-496 CE). Lawrence: Our faith is a living thing precisely because it walks hand in hand with doubt. If there were only certainty and no doubt, there would be no mystery. And therefore no need for faith. Let us pray that God will grant us a pope who doubts. And that he will grant us a pope who sins and asks for forgiveness and continues. Featured on The 7PM Project: Episode dated December 10, 2024 (2024). Allegri: MisererePerformed by Capella Musicale Pontificia Sistina, Massimo PalombellaCourtesy of Deutsche Grammophon GMBHUnder license from Universal Music Operations Ltd. I just got back from the movies after seeing “Conclave,” a movie that I was extremely excited for and loved. For most of the movie, I was so captivated by the beautiful cinematography, fantastic performances, superb music, and quality costumes and production that I was convinced it had to be a 10/10 movie. But then, unfortunately, the ending happened. I believe the ending of a movie is the most important part. What will you leave the audience with? What is your final statement? Well, in this movie, it is so contrived, confusing, and absurd that any final statement becomes confusing, and I left the theater with a bad taste in my mouth. The ending is so unrealistic that it threatens to destroy every frame of what came before. It is done solely to make a statement about the church and to shock the audience. Now, this doesn’t ruin the film as a whole (not for me, anyway), but it unfortunately spoils an otherwise superb film.
