August 1978 papal conclave

Papal conclave
August 1978
Papal conclave; August 1978;
Dates and location
	25–26 August 1978; Sistine Chapel, Apostolic Palace,; Vatican City
Key officials
Dean	Carlo Confalonieri
Sub-dean	Paolo Marella
Camerlengo	Jean-Marie Villot
Protopriest	Carlos Carmelo de Vasconcelos Motta
Protodeacon	Pericle Felici
Secretary	Ernesto Civardi
Election
Ballots	4
Elected pope
	Albino Luciani ; Name taken: John Paul I
	← 1963 October 1978 →

Last updated January 16, 2024

The papal conclave held on 25 and 26 August 1978 was the first of the two held that year. It was convoked to elect a successor to Paul VI, who had died on 6 August 1978. After the cardinal electors assembled in Rome, they elected Cardinal Albino Luciani, Patriarch of Venice, as the new pope on the fourth ballot. He accepted the election and took the name John Paul I.

It was the first conclave since the promulgation of Ingravescentem aetatem (1970), which made cardinals who had reached the age of 80 by the day the conclave began ineligible to participate in the balloting. There were 15 cardinals excluded by that rule. The number of votes cast for Luciani on the final ballot was so great that even the uniform opposition of these cardinals would not have changed the outcome.^[1]

Papabili

Among the papabili , or top candidates, were Sergio Pignedoli, President of the Secretariat for Non-Christians, Giuseppe Siri of Genoa, and Corrado Ursi of Naples.^{[ citation needed ]} Others named Giovanni Benelli of Florence, until recently Vatican Secretary of State, Sebastiano Baggio, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, and non-cardinal Anastasio Ballestrero, Archbishop of Turin.^[2] The non-Italian most often mentioned was Johannes Willebrands, Archbishop of Utrecht.^[3] Aloísio Lorscheider of Brazil, head of the Episcopal Conference of Latin America, favored Albino Luciani, the Patriarch of Venice, while Luciani is believed to have favoured Lorscheider.^[4]Time reported that the Dean of the College, Carlo Confalonieri, who was excluded from participating because of age, had been the first to suggest Luciani.^[5]

Proceedings and balloting

The conclave was held for two days from 25 August to 26 August 1978 at the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. Cardinal John Wright, an official of the Roman Curia, was in the U.S. for medical treatments and unable to attend.^[6] Proceedings on 25 August 1978 included a Mass celebrated at St. Peter's Basilica by the cardinal electors for divine guidance in their task to elect Pope Paul's successor. The cardinals processed into the Sistine Chapel six hours later while the chapel choir sang the hymn Veni Creator Spiritus . Monsignor Virgilio Noè, the Papal Master of Ceremonies, gave the traditional command of Extra omnes ("Everybody out!"), the doors were locked, and then the actual conclave began, with Cardinal Villot presiding (as would happen again in October) due to being the senior Cardinal bishop in attendance. The chapel windows remained closed, some sealed, and the summer heat was oppressive. Belgian Cardinal Leo Suenens later wrote: "My room was an oven. My cell was a kind of sauna."^[7] The conclave of August 1978 was the largest ever assembled. The traditional canopied thrones were replaced with twelve long tables to accommodate the electors. Karol Wojtyła, Aloísio Lorscheider, and Bernardin Gantin reportedly served as scrutineers during the balloting.

Luciani had told his secretary that he would decline the papacy if elected.^[8] During the third ballot, Johannes Willebrands and António Ribeiro, who sat on either side of Luciani, whispered words of encouragement to him as he continued to receive more votes. Jaime Sin told Luciani, "You will be the new pope".^[9] Luciani was elected on the fourth ballot and when Jean-Marie Villot asked Luciani whether he accepted his election he replied, "May God forgive you for what you have done" and accepted his election. In honor of his two immediate predecessors, he took John Paul as his regnal name. After the election, when Cardinal Sin paid him homage, the new pope noted: "You were a prophet, but my reign will be a short one".^[9]

On 26 August 1978 at 6:24 p.m. local time (4:24 p.m. UTC), the first signs of smoke appeared from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel. It was unclear for over an hour whether the smoke was white to indicate a pope had been elected or black to indicate that balloting would continue. Some of the cardinals had personally deposited their notes and tally sheets in the stove, darkening what should have been white smoke. Pericle Felici, as the ranking Cardinal Deacon, then stepped onto the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica and delivered the Habemus Papam in Latin, announcing Luciani's election.^[10] At 7:31 p.m. John Paul I appeared on the balcony and gave his blessing. When he appeared about to address the crowd, he was reminded that was not traditional, and he withdrew without speaking further.^[7] He invited the cardinal electors to remain in conclave for another night and dined with them, occupying the same chair as he had at their earlier group dinners.^[7]

This was the first conclave since 1721 in which three future popes participated–John Paul I, John Paul II, and Benedict XVI–and the first since 1829 in which two did so.^{[ citation needed ]}

Reported voting tallies

**PAPAL CONCLAVE, AUGUST 1978**
Duration	2 days
Number of ballots	4
Electors	111
Africa	13
Latin America	19
North America	11
Asia	8
Europe	56
Oceania	4
Italians	26
DECEASED POPE	PAUL VI (1963–1978)
NEW POPE	JOHN PAUL I (1978)

Several authors have provided what they claim to be the vote totals at the conclave. Cardinals were not required to destroy notes they took during the conclave.

Yallop tally

As presented by David Yallop, who claims that John Paul I was murdered.^[11]

First Ballot: Siri 25, Luciani 23, Pignedoli 18, Lorscheider 12, Baggio 9, scattered 24.
Second Ballot: Siri 35, Luciani 30, Pignedoli 15, Lorscheider 12, scattered 19.
Third Ballot: Luciani 68, Siri 15, Pignedoli 10, scattered 18.
Fourth Ballot: Luciani 99, Siri 11, Lorscheider 1 (cast by Luciani).

Burkle-Young tally

As presented by Francis A. Burkle-Young,^[12] based on the notes of Cardinal Mario Casariego, Archbishop of Guatemala City.^[7]

First Ballot: Siri 25, Luciani 23, Pignedoli 18, Baggio 9, König 8, Bertoli 5, Pironio 4, Felici 2, Lorscheider 2, and 15 others one each.
Second Ballot: Luciani 53, Siri 24, Pignedoli 15, Lorscheider, Baggio, Cordeiro, Wojtyła 4 each, Felici 3.
Third Ballot: Luciani 92, Pignedoli 17, Lorscheider 2.
Fourth Ballot: Luciani 102, Lorscheider 1 (cast by Luciani), Nemini (no one) 8.

Thomas-Witts tally

As presented by Gordon Thomas and Max Morgan-Witts.^[13]

First Ballot: same as Burkle-Young's count except 5 votes for Pironio, fourteen candidates with 1.
Second Ballot: Luciani 46, Pignedoli 19, Lorscheider 14, Baggio 11, Bertoli 4, others unspecified.
Third Ballot: Luciani 66, Pignedoli 21, Lorscheider 1 (cast by Aramburu), others unspecified.
Fourth Ballot: Luciani 96, Pignedoli 10, Lorscheider 1 (cast by Aramburu).

According to one report of the balloting, French traditionalist Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre received a small number of votes—variously reported as three or "several"—causing some consternation among the cardinals.^[14]

Related Research Articles

Pope John Paul I was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City from 26 August 1978 until his death 33 days later. His reign is among the shortest in papal history, resulting in the most recent year of three popes and the first to occur since 1605. John Paul I remains the most recent Italian-born pope, the last in a succession of such popes that started with Clement VII in 1523.

Giuseppe Siri was an Italian cardinal of the Catholic Church who served as Archbishop of Genoa from 1946 to 1987, and was elevated to the rank of cardinal in 1953. He was a protege of Pope Pius XII. He was considered a likely candidate to succeed Pius XII, John XXIII, Paul VI, and John Paul I.

Papabile is an unofficial Italian term first coined by Vaticanologists and now used internationally in many languages to describe a Catholic man, in practice always a cardinal, who is thought a likely or possible candidate to be elected pope.

Universi Dominici gregis is an apostolic constitution of the Catholic Church issued by Pope John Paul II on 22 February 1996. It superseded Pope Paul VI's 1975 apostolic constitution, Romano Pontifici eligendo, and all previous apostolic constitutions and orders on the subject of the election of the Roman Pontiff.

A papal conclave is a gathering of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a bishop of Rome, also known as the pope. Catholics consider the pope to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and the earthly head of the Catholic Church.

A papal conclave was held on 18 and 19 April 2005 to elect a successor to John Paul II, who had died on 2 April 2005. Upon the pope's death, the cardinals of the Catholic Church who were in Rome met and set a date for the beginning of the conclave. Of the 117 eligible members of the College of Cardinals, those younger than 80 years of age at the time of the death of Pope John Paul II, all but two attended. After several days of private meetings attended by both cardinal electors and non-voting cardinals, the conclave began on 18 April 2005. It ended the following day after four ballots with the election of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, Dean of the College of Cardinals and Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. After accepting his election, he took the name Benedict XVI.

The papal conclave held from 31 July to 4 August 1903 saw the election of Cardinal Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto to become pope in succession to Leo XIII, who had died on 20 July after a 25-year-long pontificate. Some 62 cardinals participated in the balloting. Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria asserted the right claimed by certain Catholic rulers to veto a candidate for the papacy, blocking the election of the leading candidate, Cardinal Secretary of State Mariano Rampolla. Sarto was elected on the seventh ballot and took the name Pius X.

The papal conclave held from 14 to 16 October 1978 was triggered by the death of John Paul I on 28 September 1978, just 33 days after he was elected pope. The conclave to elect John Paul I's successor ended after eight ballots. The cardinal electors selected Cardinal Karol Józef Wojtyła, Archbishop of Kraków, as the new pope. The third pope in the year, Wojtyła accepted his election and took the name John Paul II.

A papal conclave was held from 31 August to 3 September 1914 which elected Giacomo della Chiesa to succeed Pius X, who died on August 20, as pope. Della Chiesa, hitherto the archbishop of Bologna, took the name Benedict XV.

A papal conclave was held from 19 to 21 June 1963 to elect a successor of John XXIII, who had died on 3 June 1963. The cardinal electors assembled in Rome and, after six ballots, elected Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini, Archbishop of Milan. He accepted the election and took the name Paul VI. Paul VI's coronation on 30 June was the last papal coronation to date.

A papal conclave took place from 25 to 28 October following the death of Pope Pius XII on 9 October 1958. On the eleventh ballot, the College of Cardinals elected Cardinal Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli as the new pope. He accepted the election and took the name John XXIII. He was the second patriarch of Venice to be elected pontiff in the 20th century after Pius X.

Romano Pontifici eligendo was the apostolic constitution governing the election of popes that was promulgated by Pope Paul VI on 1 October 1975. It instituted a number of far-reaching reforms in the process of electing popes. It set the maximum number of electors at 120 and restated in a more formal context the rule he had already instituted that cardinals over the age of 80 not participate in electing a pope.

Sergio Pignedoli was a prominent Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church and a top candidate for pope. He served as auxiliary bishop to Pope Paul VI when he was archbishop of Milan, and as President of the Secretariat for Non-Christians from 1973 to 1980. He was elevated to the cardinalate in 1973.

Some hold the conspiracy theory which asserts that the conservative Cardinal Giuseppe Siri, then the Archbishop of Genoa, was elected pope in the 1958 papal conclave, taking the name Pope Gregory XVII, but that his election was suppressed. Siri did not associate himself with this idea.

Carlo Confalonieri was an Italian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as prefect of the Congregation for Bishops from 1967 to 1973, and dean of the College of Cardinals from 1977 until his death. Confalonieri was elevated to the cardinalate in 1958.

Aloísio Leo Arlindo Lorscheider, O.F.M. was a Brazilian Roman Catholic cardinal during the 1970s and 1980s. He was known as an advocate of liberation theology in the 1970s and was seen by some observers as a serious candidate for the papacy in the two conclaves of 1978.

Pope John Paul I died suddenly in September 1978, 33 days after his election. Following his death, several conspiracy theories have sprung up.

The papal conclaves of August 1978 and of October 1978 were respectively convened to elect a pope, the leader of the Catholic Church, to succeed Paul VI and John Paul I following their respective deaths on 6 August 1978 and on 28 September 1978. In accordance with the apostolic constitution Romano Pontifici eligendo, which governed the vacancy of the Holy See, only cardinals who had not passed their 80th birthday on the day on which the conclave began were eligible to participate. Although not formal requirements, the cardinal electors invariably elected the pope from among their number and did so by secret ballot. Due to the brief duration between the conclaves, the respective lists of cardinal electors are nearly identical.

<i>The Last Confession</i> Stage play by Roger Crane

The Last Confession is a stage play by Roger Crane about the election and death of Pope John Paul I. The play follows Giovanni Benelli who recounts, during his last confession, his role in the death of John Paul and how this led him to lose his faith. It premiered at the Chichester Festival Theatre on 27 April 2007.

A conclave was convened on 12 March 2013 to elect a pope to succeed Benedict XVI, who had resigned on 28 February. 115 participating cardinal-electors gathered. On the fifth ballot, the conclave elected Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, SJ, Archbishop of Buenos Aires. He took the pontifical name Francis.

References

↑ Reese, Thomas (1998). Inside the Vatican. Harvard University Press. p. 101. ISBN 9780674418028 . Retrieved 22 June 2018. According to Reese, 16 cardinals were excluded from voting because of their age.
↑ Tanner, Henry (7 August 1978). "Pope Paul VI Is Dead of a Heart Attack at 80; Guided the Church Through Era of Change". The New York Times . Retrieved 22 June 2018.
↑ Hofmann, Paul (9 August 1978). "Choice of Non‐Italian Pope Held Possible but Unlikely". The New York Times . Retrieved 22 June 2018.
↑ Reese, Thomas (1998). Inside the Vatican. Harvard University Press. p. 93. ISBN 9780674418028 . Retrieved 22 June 2018.
↑ "A Swift, Stunning Choice" . Time . 4 September 1978.
↑ "Leading U.S. Cardinal To Miss Papal Voting". New York Times. 9 August 1978. Retrieved 31 October 2017.
1 2 3 4 "A look back at the Conclave that elected Albino Luciani Pope". La Stampa. 25 August 2015. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
↑ Allen Jr., John L. (2 November 2012). "Debunking four myths about John Paul I, the 'Smiling Pope'". National Catholic Reporter.
1 2 Knowles, Leo (2003). Modern Heroes of the Church. Our Sunday Visitor.^{[ page needed ]}
↑ Nossiter, Bernard D. (27 August 1978). "Venice Cardinal Elected Pope". Washington Post. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
↑ Yallop, David (2007). In God's Name. Basic Books. ISBN 978-0-553-05073-8 . Retrieved 22 June 2018.^{[ page needed ]}
↑ Burkle-Young, Frances A. (1999). Passing the Key: Modern Cardinals, Conclaves, and the Election of the Next Popes. Madison Books. ISBN 1-56833-130-4.^{[ page needed ]}
↑ Thomas, Gordon; Morgan-Witts, Max (1983). Pontiff:The Vatican, the KGB, and the Year of the Three Popes. Doubleday. ISBN 0-451-12951-2.^{[ page needed ]}
↑ White, David Allen (2006). The Horn of the Unicorn. Angelus Press. ISBN 189233139X.^{[ page needed ]}

External links

"The Conclave: 25 August 1978 – 26 August 1978". John Paul I Blog. Archived from the original on 8 November 2017. Retrieved 9 April 2007.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] Reese, Thomas (1998). Inside the Vatican. Harvard University Press. p. 101. ISBN 9780674418028 . Retrieved 22 June 2018. According to Reese, 16 cardinals were excluded from voting because of their age.

[2] Tanner, Henry (7 August 1978). "Pope Paul VI Is Dead of a Heart Attack at 80; Guided the Church Through Era of Change". The New York Times . Retrieved 22 June 2018.

[3] Hofmann, Paul (9 August 1978). "Choice of Non‐Italian Pope Held Possible but Unlikely". The New York Times . Retrieved 22 June 2018.

[4] Reese, Thomas (1998). Inside the Vatican. Harvard University Press. p. 93. ISBN 9780674418028 . Retrieved 22 June 2018.

[5] "A Swift, Stunning Choice" . Time . 4 September 1978.

[6] "Leading U.S. Cardinal To Miss Papal Voting". New York Times. 9 August 1978. Retrieved 31 October 2017.

[lookback-7] 1 2 3 4 "A look back at the Conclave that elected Albino Luciani Pope". La Stampa. 25 August 2015. Retrieved 22 June 2018.

[8] Allen Jr., John L. (2 November 2012). "Debunking four myths about John Paul I, the 'Smiling Pope'". National Catholic Reporter.

[knowles-9] 1 2 Knowles, Leo (2003). Modern Heroes of the Church. Our Sunday Visitor.^{[ page needed ]}

[10] Nossiter, Bernard D. (27 August 1978). "Venice Cardinal Elected Pope". Washington Post. Retrieved 22 June 2018.

[11] Yallop, David (2007). In God's Name. Basic Books. ISBN 978-0-553-05073-8 . Retrieved 22 June 2018.^{[ page needed ]}

[12] Burkle-Young, Frances A. (1999). Passing the Key: Modern Cardinals, Conclaves, and the Election of the Next Popes. Madison Books. ISBN 1-56833-130-4.^{[ page needed ]}

[13] Thomas, Gordon; Morgan-Witts, Max (1983). Pontiff:The Vatican, the KGB, and the Year of the Three Popes. Doubleday. ISBN 0-451-12951-2.^{[ page needed ]}

[14] White, David Allen (2006). The Horn of the Unicorn. Angelus Press. ISBN 189233139X.^{[ page needed ]}

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

v t e Papal elections and conclaves
Papal selection before 1059 Papal conclave (1274–1276, 1294–present)
Elections and conclaves	1061 1073 1086 1088 1099 1118 1119 1124 1130 1143 1144 1145 1153 1154 1159 1181 1185 October 1187 December 1187 1191 1198 1216 1227 1241 1243 1254 1261 1264–1265 1268–1271 January 1276 July 1276 September 1276 1277 1280–1281 1285 1287–1288 1292–1294 1294 1303 1304–1305 1314–1316 1334 1342 1352 1362 1370 1378 1389 1404 1406 1417 1431 1447 1455 1458 1464 1471 1484 1492 September 1503 electors October 1503 electors 1513 1521–1522 1523 1534 1549–1550 April 1555 May 1555 1559 1565–1566 1572 1585 September 1590 October–December 1590 1591 1592 March–April 1605 electors May 1605 electors 1621 1623 1644 1655 1667 1669–1670 1676 1689 1691 1700 1721 1724 1730 1740 1758 1769 1774–1775 1799–1800 1823 1829 1830–1831 1846 1878 1903 1914 electors 1922 electors 1939 electors 1958 electors 1963 electors August 1978 electors October 1978 electors 2005 electors 2013 electors
Governing documents (selected)	Ubi periculum (1274) Aeterni Patris Filius (1621) Cum proxime (1922) Ingravescentem aetatem (1970) Romano Pontifici eligendo (1975) Universi Dominici gregis (1996) De aliquis mutationibus in normis de electione Romani Pontificis (2007) Normas nonnullas (2013)
Category