VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - White smoke rose from the Vatican's Sistine Chapel on Wednesday signaling cardinals had elected a new pope to succeed Benedict and take charge of the troubled Roman Catholic Church. Full story
On purpose and by chance, Americans join crowd in St. Peter's Square to watch for signs of a newly elected Pope.
Black smoke poured from the Sistine Chapel chimney on Tuesday, signaling that cardinals had failed on their first vote of the papal conclave to choose a new leader for the world's 1.2 billion Catholics and their troubled church. Full story
(Reuters) - Roman Catholic Cardinals begin a conclave on Tuesday to elect the Church's 266th pontiff and a successor to Pope Benedict, who abdicated unexpectedly last month. Full story
VATICAN CITY -- The papal conclave to elect the new leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics will begin on Tuesday afternoon, a Vatican spokesman said Friday.Cardinals will enter the closed meeting after holding a special Mass in St. Peter's Basilica in the morning, Father Federico Lombardi annou Full story
Ritual words, uttered in Latin, open and close the secret selection process of the new pope. It starts with "Extra omnes" — or "Everyone out" — expelling all but voting cardinals from the Sistine Chapel where conclave balloting takes place. It ends with "Accepto" — "I accept" — the solemn word the v Full story
In a dramatic exit from the Vatican, Pope Benedict flew off to the papal retreat Castel Gandolfo. Tourists gathered in St. Peter’s Square to watch the momentous occasion. NBC’s Anne Thompson reports.
