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Some journalists brave the warm spring sun, others seek respite in the shade of the Vatican’s colonnades. Whatever their strategy, the aim is the same: to spot the red-capped cardinals emerging from Synod Hall and try to elicit from them a clue as to who will succeed Pope Francis.
The men responsible for picking a new pontiff are enjoying rock-star status in Rome this week as they prepare for conclave: the secret, centuries-old ritual of electing a leader of the Catholic church that is due to begin on 7 May.
Marina García Diéguez is among the journalists partaking in the daily stakeout. She is a conclave novice, but was quick to suss out the cunning ways the cardinals try to avoid the gaggle of reporters.
“Each one has his own strategy,” said Diéguez, who works for the Spanish radio station Cadena Ser and Mediaset España. “Some already have cars with blacked-out windows waiting for them, so they can make a sharp exit. Others remove their red skullcaps and leave by foot, taking a route that crosses St Peter’s Square, where they can get lost among the tourists, before escaping through Via della Conciliazione.” It was at that point, she advised, that you stood a good chance of catching one.
Diéguez had managed to obtain quotes from a couple, including Fernando Filoni, an Italian cardinal whose name cropped up this week among the favourites for pope. The Guardian’s attempt to give chase was not as successful. “I don’t speak English, which at this precise moment, is a very good thing,” said an Argentinian cardinal, before politely adding, in Italian: “But we are working very well together,” and striding off.
About 180 cardinals from all over the world have been gathering each morning this week at Synod Hall to get to know each other and to share their visions of the church, but ultimately to establish a clear pope contender. Of that number, 133 are eligible to vote after two dropped out of the conclave for health reasons.
Eight in 10 of the voters were appointed by Francis, with 20 becoming cardinals only in December. Francis made a point of selecting cardinals from places where there had never previously been one, such as Myanmar, Haiti and Rwanda. Until this past week or so, many had never met.
During conclave, the men will be sequestered in their humble lodgings at Casa Santa Marta, the guesthouse where Pope Francis lived during his 12-year papacy, and the Sistine Chapel, where the voting takes place.
The cardinals swear an oath of silence before each pre-conclave meeting and will do so again when the election begins.
But until they are sequestered, it is in the bars and restaurants in the area surrounding the Vatican where the real talking happens, with some mischievous cardinals exploiting the press while they can to leak titbits or to discredit the main candidates.
Al Passetto di Borgo, a restaurant in Borgo Pio, has been a favourite among Rome’s clergy for years. According to a framed newspaper article hanging on the wall, this was the place where cardinals, over carbonara and tiramisu, plotted to ensure the election of Joseph Ratzinger in the 2005 conclave.
Seán Patrick O’Malley, an American cardinal who leads a commission tasked with preventing clerical abuse against minors, was among the diners this week. Aged 80, O’Malley is too old to vote but has been named by some church-watchers as a possibility for pontiff. Another diner was Donald Wuerl, who in 2018 resigned as archbishop of Washington over his handling of a sexual abuse scandal.
Showing a photo on his phone of a plain-clothed Wuerl in Al Passetto di Borgo, the restaurant’s owner, Antonello Fulvimari, said: “He’s been coming here since 1969.”
The only information Fulvimari had been able to glean from his prestigious clients this week was that they wanted the conclave over “as soon as possible”. “They all want to get home,” he added. “But this is where the real decisions get made.”
Another popular restaurant is Marcantonio, although according to a waiter, the presence of cardinals has petered out because of journalists.
Cardinals who want to spread rumours tend to resort to the veteran Vatican reporters from the Italian press. They have sought to diminish the credibility of some leading contenders – for example Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s secretary of state – by claiming they have health issues. Luis Antonio Tagle, a reformer from the Philippines and a strong favourite, has also had a rough ride from conservative cardinals after a video of him singing John Lennon’s Imagine emerged on the internet.
Another meeting point is reportedly Caffe dei Papi, a coffee bar tucked away from the main hubbub on Via Vespasiano. “But I never know when they are here,” said Ilda, the bar’s manager. “I just read about it in the newspaper.”
Unsurprisingly, the main chatter in the bar has revolved around who will be elected pope. “I think it should be someone who embraces everyone,” said Ilda.
Vincenzo Aru, a building concierge who works nearby, is a lapsed Catholic and therefore indifferent. “I’m just happy they’ve cleaned the streets,” he said. “The only time that happens around here is when a pope dies.”
