Camille Naredo

Italian cardinal Giovanni Battista Re officiates the mass in front of the coffin of late Pope Francis at the start of the funeral ceremony at St Peter's Square in The Vatican, on April 26, 2025.

Italian cardinal Giovanni Battista Re officiates the mass in front of the coffin of late Pope Francis at the start of the funeral ceremony at St Peter's Square in The Vatican, on April 26, 2025. (Photo by Andreas SOLARO / AFP)

Article (news)

Pope Francis

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1745740918047AFP__20250426__43K37XP__v1__Preview__VaticanReligionPopeFuneral.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Italian cardinal Giovanni Battista Re officiates the mass in front of the coffin of late Pope Francis at the start of the funeral ceremony at St Peter&#x27;s Square in The Vatican, on April 26, 2025. Andreas Solaro, AFP"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Italian cardinal Giovanni Battista Re officiates the mass in front of the coffin of late Pope Francis at the start of the funeral ceremony at St Peter&#x27;s Square in The Vatican, on April 26, 2025. <em>Andreas Solaro, AFP</em></span></span></span></div><p>PARIS, France -- For years, traditionalists raged at Pope Francis&#x27;s liberal approach. The question now is whether his successor will walk the same path, or take the Catholic Church in a new direction.</p><p>Cardinals will meet within days for a conclave to elect a new pontiff, sparking fevered speculation about how the next pope will guide the world&#x27;s 1.4 billion Catholics.</p><p>But experts say that despite his reforms, Francis did not change fundamental doctrine -- suggesting the next leader could bring a fresh style and different priorities, but is unlikely to upend 2,000-years of belief.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/4/26/popes-coffin-arrives-for-burial-at-rome-basilica-1942">READ: Francis laid to rest as 400,000 mourn pope &#x27;with an open heart&#x27;</a></div><p>&quot;Whether on the issues of abortion, the end of life, marriage for priests, the ordination of women, or homosexuality, which were points of traditional conservative doctrine, Francis has changed nothing,&quot; said Francois Mabille, director of the Geopolitical Observatory of Religion.</p><p>The Argentine certainly took some radical steps. He made institutional changes, lifted the veil of papal secrecy over child sex abuse, limited the use of the Latin mass, and opened the door to blessings of same-sex couples.</p><p>He emphasized humility, wasted no opportunity to speak out for the voiceless and lambast the powerful, while promising to open the Church to all, epitomized by his remark on gay believers: &quot;Who am I to judge?&quot;.</p><p>All these statements &quot;made an impression on public opinion&quot;, Mabille said.</p><p>With his successor, &quot;it is not certain that the issue of migrants, which he hammered home for 12 years, will be taken up in the same way and with such frequency&quot;, the analyst said.</p><p>Another shift could be on world conflicts, in which Francis has intervened in a way &quot;unmatched by almost all the sovereign pontiffs of the 20th century&quot;, Mabille said.</p><p>But Francis&#x27;s demands for peace in Gaza and Ukraine failed to produce any tangible results, beyond riling Israel and sparking bitterness among many in Kyiv for suggesting it raise the &quot;white flag&quot; to Russia.</p><p>Whether in Ukraine or the Middle East, Francis&#x27;s successor &quot;will undoubtedly take a back seat&quot;, Mabille said.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/4/27/all-eyes-turn-to-conclave-after-pope-francis-s-funeral-1447">READ: All eyes turn to conclave after Pope Francis&#x27;s funeral</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>- &#x27;Flexibility&#x27; -</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0evHv2KBIH0?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></div><p>The future pope will, however, have to manage a number of key challenges facing the Catholic Church, from the role of women to the continued revelations about clerical child sex abuse.</p><p>The European church is also facing a crisis in vocations and falling church attendance, even if the numbers of believers are growing in Africa and Asia.</p><p>Martin Dumont, secretary general of the Research Institute for the Study of Religions, agreed it was too simplistic to speak of continuity or rupture.</p><p>The head of the Church &quot;must be a point of unity for all Catholics&quot;, he told AFP.</p><p>Personality will play a role.</p><p>Dumont said &quot;there will undoubtedly be a need for someone who speaks less&quot; and in a &quot;more controlled&quot; approach, after Francis &quot;spoke all the time, on all subjects&quot;.</p><p>But he predicted no major changes in the way the Church spreads the Catholic faith.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>- &#x27;Surprises&#x27; -</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/d-vk5gI9TUU?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></div><p>In previous conclaves, the cardinals have formed distinct groups.</p><p>Dumont noted that in 2005, after the death of John Paul II, &quot;two different axes&quot; emerged, split between the strong figures of Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini and that of Joseph Ratzinger -- who became Pope Benedict XVI.</p><p>This year, &quot;there is no particular camp&quot;.</p><p>Francis appointed almost 80 percent of cardinals who will be eligible to vote for his successor -- but past experience warns against assuming they will choose the next pope in his mold.</p><p>Dumont points to Fridolin Ambongo, Archbishop of Kinshasa, who was made a cardinal by Francis -- only to lead the protests by African episcopates against the blessing of same-sex couples.</p><p>In addition, &quot;there are those who are disappointed with Francis&quot;, Mabille said.</p><p>Many found him authoritarian, someone who &quot;abandon(ed) collaborators who were totally devoted to him, overnight&quot;, the analyst added.</p><p>In this conclave, as a result, &quot;we could be in for some surprises&quot;.</p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div>

<p>For years, traditionalists raged at Pope Francis's liberal approach. The question now is whether his successor will walk the same path, or take the Catholic Church in a new direction.</p>

For years, traditionalists raged at Pope Francis's liberal approach. The question now is whether his successor will walk the same path, or take the Catholic Church in a new direction.

Continuity or rupture: What direction for the next pope?

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Sports

Metro.Style

More

Traffic

Manila

Horoscope

World

Continuity or rupture: What direction for the next pope?

Agence France-Presse,

Claire Gallen

Published Apr 27, 2025 10:45 PM PHT

Read More:

absnews

Pope Francis

conclave

Vatican

Holy See

Catholic Church

Rome

Italy

Sistine Chapel

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

AI Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.