8 Insane Facts You Didn’t Know About The Papal ‘Conclave’

THE PAPAL conclave, the process by which the Vatican elects a new pope has often fascinated people due to its ceremonious and clandestine nature.

WWN has compiled some of the wildest facts about the process which are sure to blow your mind:

1) The cardinals are locked away from the outside world for the entirety of the conclave and can’t even have their wives and children visit them.

2) The Vatican will miss its Co2 emission targets for this year, due to any black smoke which is a result of the cardinals failing to elect a new pope during a round of voting.

3) The Papal Conclave half-time show will be sponsored by Pepsi this year, marking an end to the 75-year sponsorship by Waterford’s very own O’Brien’s Ecclesiastical Supplies. This year’s performer is Sam Smith.

4) A candidate ultimately needs two-thirds of the votes to be declared pope, however all is not lost for losing candidates as several of them can be put together by Simon Cowell and repackaged as a successful boyband.

5) Your mother wouldn’t cope well with a black pope at all at all.

6) Candidates for the papacy must present their pitches in a Powerpoint presentation projected onto the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. (The wifi password is ‘God1234’).

7) Anyone who participates in the voting as a cardinal can subsequently charge as much as €500 per confession back in their home parish.

8) If the priests still haven’t elected a new pope after a week they are threatened with a visit from Katy Perry.

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