Pope Francis: Towards the Conclave

The Consistory of December 7 might not have ended on December 8 with the Mass of the Cardinals. There is a sense in which it will continue until December 15, when Pope Francis will make a one-day visit to Corsica. That visit is one discerning observers may choose to see as a sort of handover.

Pope Francis will visit Corsica at the invitation of 54-year-old Cardinal Francois-Xavier Bustillo. The Pope particularly appreciates him. Francis gave his book, Witnesses, Not Officials, to the clergy of Rome during the Chrism Mass on Holy Thursday 2022 and created him a cardinal in 2023. It seems that he has already designated him to be the successor of Archbishop Laurent Ulrich in Paris.

A Conventual Franciscan, Bustillo is appreciated for the simplicity of his customs—he continues to dress as a Franciscan, even though he was forced to wear the red hat. He is well regarded even in the circle of “conservatives,” given his friendship with the Corsican cardinal Dominique Mamberti, who appreciates him. Bustillo seems to have been identified by Pope Francis as his possible successor.

All the clues lead there, including this very short, almost unexpected, and incomprehensible trip, which will be made just seven days after the reopening of the Basilica of Notre Dame in Paris.

From a diplomatic point of view, it is a challenging trip, considering that the Pope wants to avoid official visits to large countries like France. Still, he cannot, for Corsica, use the trick he used for the trip to Marseilles for the Mediterranean Meetings, or, as he did for the trip to Strasbourg in 2014. At that time, Pope Francis said he was going to Marseilles, not France. In 2014, he stressed that it was a trip to the European institutions, so much so that the Pope did not set foot in the city or even visit the Strasbourg Cathedral celebrating its thousandth birthday.

However, all this cannot be done in Corsica because Corsica is experiencing a strong independence movement, and therefore, saying that the trip is in Corsica would do nothing but foment irredentist spirits.

Why does the trip to Corsica seem like the completion of the Consistory?

Seven days after the Consistory, Pope Francis clearly indicates what he thinks is the model to follow. The Pope goes to conclude a conference on popular piety in the Mediterranean with a bishop of the people and popular. And yet, the Pope goes to a bishop who did not hesitate to write a more “institutional” book, together with Archbishop Edgar Pena Parra, substitute of the Secretariat of State, but above all together with Nicolas Diat, author of several books with Cardinal Robert Sarah. And, in one fell swoop, Bustillo winked at the diplomatic world and the world of conservative culture with bridges also in the secular world while remaining substantially himself.

Pope Francis also appreciated this kind of cunning. Isn’t Pope Francis the one who favored left-wing intellectuals and atheists like Eugenio Scalfari for his interviews and statements or popular or secular programs like his forays into radio, TV, and a documentary with journalist Jordi Èvole? Isn’t Pope Francis the one who appreciated the well-known Italian abortionist Emma Bonino to the point of paying her a visit after her illness – a visit accompanied by a photo, anyway? Isn’t Pope Francis the one who speaks of “faggots,” but at the same time also shows that he disavows a document from the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith that said no to the blessing of gay couples that he had previously approved?

Pope Francis has a way of navigating multiple fronts that he himself described as “smart.” Above all, he has the will to maintain the image of a priest of the people while, in reality, keeping all forms of power and showing himself close to all the centers of power.

Why, then, should the successor have the characteristics of Bustillo?

Pope Francis wants a successor who does not know Rome and is therefore not tied to Roman traditions. Pope Francis knows Roman traditions, although he has never been part of them, and has decided to deconstruct them, one after the other. However, for his revolution to continue, a successor with no interest in or in-depth knowledge of the forms of power is needed.

The successor would also have to have the media’s favor, at least initially. A divisive papacy like Francis’s carries profound repercussions, and without the media’s sympathy, no successor would be considered worthy by the people. Bustillo would be an outsider and, therefore, would undoubtedly please the press.

Above all, the successor must maintain the current Pope. And Bustillo would take a completely different approach.

What has been said about Bustillo could be said about many cardinals that Pope Francis has created in recent years. Starting next year, only four cardinals created by John Paul II will remain able to vote in the conclave. Of them, only Cardinal Petr Erdo, Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest, seems well-known enough to get many votes.

However, if a cardinal created by John Paul II were to be elected Pope, it would be a tremendous disavowal of the pontificate. John Paul II has been almost forgotten; his pontificate has been put in parentheses in recent years, and so has Benedict XVI. The final document of the Synod on synodality notes the autonomy of episcopal conferences. Still, more references to documents on John Paul II must be needed.

Of course, it would not be the first time Pope Francis would be disputed in recent years. The latest example was at the Synod when the working groups on controversial issues took at least two essential steps backward: no to the institution of the female diaconate because the time was ripe, and no to the bishop as sole judge in marriage annulment processes, imposed by Pope Francis but not well received by the bishops, who instead would like these skills entrusted to professionals (in Italy the inter diocesan tribunals worked very well).

One can see a repudiation of Pope Francis, however, in many other details.

In the decision of the Commission of the Episcopal Conferences of the European Union to elect Mariano Crociata as president, Crociata was sent out from the general secretariat of the Italian Episcopal Conference and assigned to the small diocese of Latina due to a significant disagreement with Pope Francis on management issues, to describe it generally. The choice of the US Episcopal Conference to nominate Archbishop Timothy Broglio, a past member of John Paul II’s Secretariat of State, as president, is one such detail, as well. The American cardinals created by Pope Francis have struggled even to take the vice-presidencies of the commissions.

The dramatic about-face to the Pope on Fiducia Supplicans, the declaration that allows the blessing of irregular couples under certain conditions was almost rejected en masse by the African continent but also by a good part of Asia, Europe, and Latin America, is another,

This trip to Corsica is one of the last opportunities for Pope Francis to direct the choice of his successor (or at least try to direct the choice). And yes, among the new cardinals, there are interesting profiles, such as the Archbishop of Toronto, Francis Leo, and the Archbishop of Rabat, Cristobal Lopez. They are, however, men of dialogue who know how to put together the old and the new, are sensitive to experts’ advice, and do not desire to go beyond the Vatican structure. If anything, they desire to use it, and to use it in a good way.

Pope Francis is looking for a way to perpetuate his revolution.

There will be 140 cardinals in a possible conclave for a while. A two-thirds majority will be difficult anyway. Many will not even know each other. And then, they will look at the easiest choice, perhaps the Pope’s indications. This is what Pope Francis thought, probably—one cannot know for sure.

We will see in Corsica whether the Pope is going in that direction and arranging everything for his succession.