We Have a Pope!

From the Vatican Information Service:

"Dear Brothers and Sisters,

After the great Pope John Paul II, the Lord Cardinals have elected me, a simple and humble worker in the vineyard of the Lord. I am consoled by the fact that the Lord knows how to act, even with inadequate instruments and above all I entrust myself to your prayers. In the joy of the Risen Lord, trusting in His permanent help, as we go forward the Lord will help us, and His Mother, Mary Most Holy, is on our side Thank you."

Pope Benedict XVI !!!

Great news... did anyone notice that his coat of arms was almost exactly like John Paul's? I see this as a further fulfillment of St. John Bosco's prophecy (see below). May God bless this papacy!

White Smoke--Habemus Papam

Who will it be?

Fraud--Email Circulating with the FIrst Vote of the Conclave

There is a pretty good clue in this list that this is fake, I wonder how many can locate it?

1° Scrutinio
32 Cardinale Ratzinger
17 Cardinale Martini
9 Cardinale Tettamanzi
8 Cardinale Sodano
7 Cardinale Hoyos
6 Cardinale Scola
5 Cardinale Arinze
4 Cardinale Dias
4 Cardinale Schönborn
3 Cardinale Carrera
3 Cardinale Daneels
3 Cardinale Errazuriz
3 Cardinale Hummes
3 Cardinale Kaspar
3 Cardinale Re
2 Cardinale Bergoglio
2 Cardinale Eyt

Gray Smoke but No Bells

No one could tell what color smoke was coming out this morning but there were no bells and no appearance on the balcony...I'm guessing this probably means no Cardinal Ratzinger for the next pope.

Black Smoke

First balloting complete, no new pope! Plenty of confusion though on what color the smoke was for a few minutes, anyway.

Conclave Schedule--When it will Happen Here

From NJ.com: NewsFlash - Timeline of Vatican conclave to pick pope:

Today
4:30 p.m. (10:30 a.m. EDT): Cardinals enter the Sistine Chapel, then take their oath of secrecy and hear a meditation from a senior cardinal. After taking their oath, the cardinals will decide whether to take a first vote Monday or wait until Tuesday morning.

Tuesday, April 19
7:30 a.m. (1:30 a.m. EDT): Cardinals celebrate Mass in the hotel chapel.
9 a.m. (3 a.m. EDT): Cardinals gather in Sistine Chapel for two rounds of balloting if new pope not elected Monday.
Noon (6 a.m. EDT): Approximate time of first smoke signal from Sistine Chapel. It will indicate whether a new pope has been chosen (white smoke) or no decision has been made (black smoke) in the morning session of balloting. The smoke is from the burning of the secret ballots after the two rounds of voting held mornings and afternoons.
4 p.m. (10 a.m. EDT): Cardinals return to the Sistine Chapel for two rounds of afternoon balloting.
7 p.m. (1 p.m. EDT): Approximate time of smoke signal after second round of voting.
The rest of the days of the conclave are expected to follow Tuesday's schedule. The Vatican spokesman said smoke signals from burned ballot papers could likely be seen at about noon (6 a.m. EDT) or 7 p.m. (1 p.m. EDT) each day --unless a winner is elected Monday in a first ballot."