Catholic Online Forum

The Vatican is considering calls from cardinals to hold a papal conclave earlier than planned, after Pope Benedict XVI steps down on 28 February.

Church officials want a successor to be in place before the start of Holy Week on 24 March - the most important event in the Christian calendar.

Under current rules, the vote cannot be held before 15 March, to give cardinals enough time to travel to Rome.

The Vatican is now examining the possibility of changing the rule.

According to the Holy See's constitution, a 15-20 day waiting period must be observed after the papacy becomes vacant.

The rule is in place to allow "all those [cardinals] who are absent'' sufficient time to make the journey to Rome, Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said.

But the prospect of bringing forward the date had been raised by a number of cardinals, he added.

And given that they already knew when Pope Benedict was stepping down, they would have plenty of time to plan their trip.

"It is possible that church authorities can prepare a proposal to be taken up by the cardinals on the first day after the papal vacancy," Mr Lombardi said.

The rules on papal succession were open to interpretation and "this is a question that people are discussing", he said.

Do not the Cardinals have the authority, in the absence of a pope, to legislate anything he would normally legislate?

Apparently not, according to Peters.

I agree that March 15 is far too long to wait to begin choosing a new pope. But the proper solution, in my view, is for the Legislator to derogate from UDG 37 by either (A) setting an earlier conclave start date or (B) expressly delegating the interregnal cardinalatial commission to fix an earlier date.

The legalities of papal conclaves are among the last things on earth that should be thrown into question.

Added:

UDG 1. During the vacancy of the Apostolic See, the College of Cardinals has no power or jurisdiction in matters which pertain to the Supreme Pontiff during his lifetime or in the exercise of his office; such matters are to be reserved completely and exclusively to the future Pope. I therefore declare null and void any act of power or jurisdiction pertaining to the Roman Pontiff during his lifetime or in the exercise of his office which the College of Cardinals might see fit to exercise, beyond the limits expressly permitted in this Constitution.

UDG 4. During the vacancy of the Apostolic See, laws issued by the Roman Pontiffs can in no way be corrected or modified, nor can anything be added or subtracted, nor a dispensation be given even from a part of them, especially with regard to the procedures governing the election of the Supreme Pontiff. Indeed, should anything be done or even attempted against this prescription, by my supreme authority I declare it null and void.

The director of the Holy See Press Office, Fr. Federico Lombardi, S.J., responding to journalists' questions, commented that the Holy Father is considering the publication of a Motu Proprio in the coming days, obviously before the beginning of the Sede Vacante, to clarify a few particular points regarding the Apostolic Constitution on the conclave that have arisen over the last years.

"It seems to me, for example, the clarification of some details in order to be in complete agreement with another document regarding the conclave, that is, the Ordo Rituum Conclavis."