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Papal Election Research Guide

INTRODUCTION

After an unusually brief conclave (only after three votes), Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, 78, from Germany was elected as the 265th pope on Tuesday, April 19, 2005 at around 6 p.m. in Rome. He announced his name, Pope Benedict XVI, an hour later. It has been twenty-six years since the last Pope was elected. One hundred and fifteen Cardinals from fifty-two countries eligible to vote started meeting in the Sistine Chapel on April 18 to elect the pope. For more information on the result of the election, on Pope Benedict XVI, and reactions from different parts of the world, check the following sites:

Below are more Web sites and books that inform the election process in general.

THE PAPAL ELECTION PROCESS

PAPABILI - LEADING CONTENDERS TO BE ELECTED POPE

HISTORY OF THE PAPAL ELECTIONS - SELECTED BOOKS

  • Allen, John L., Conclave: The Politics, Personalities, and Process of the Next Papal Election. New York: Image/Doubleday, 2002
    Lauinger Library Stacks BX1805 .A54 2002

  • Avadi, Zsolt, The Popes: The History of How They are Chosen, Elected, and Crowned. New York, Farrar, Straus and Cudahy, 1955.
    Lauinger Library Stacks BX1805 .A7

  • Baumgartner, Frederic J., Behind Locked Doors: A History of the Papal Elections. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2003.
    5th Floor, BX1805 .B324 2004

  • Burkle-Young, Francis A., Passing the Keys: Modern Cardinals, Conclaves, and the Election of the Next Pope. Lanham, Md.: Madison Books, 1999.
    Lauinger Library Stacks BX1805 .B87 1999

  • Pham, John-Peter, Heirs of the Fisherman: Behind the Scenes of Papal Death and Succession. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.
    Lauinger Library Stacks BX1805 .P45 2004

BIOGRAPHY OF POPE JOHN PAUL II

  • John Paul II
    http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/index.htm
    It includes a biography of Pope John Paul II as well as information about all his travels, his apostolic constitutions, letters, exhortations, encyclicals, and speeches.

  • "Do Not Be Afraid..." - Ioannes Paulus II
    http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/special_features/hf_jp_ii_xxv_en.htm
    It provides annual reviews of the Pope's writings, speeches, travels, and main events at the Vatican from 1978 to 2005.

  • "John Paul II." Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2nd ed. 17 Vols. Gale Research, 1998. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC (For more biographical entries from other encyclopedias of biography, check Biography Resource Center)

  • "Pope John Paul II," Contemporary Authors Online, Gale 2005. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC (For more biographical entries from other encyclopedias of biography, check Biography Resource Center)

  • Bernstein, Carl and Marco Politi, His Holiness: John Paul II and the Hidden History of Our Time. New York: Doubleday 1996.
    Lauinger Stacks, BX1378.5 .B47 1996; Lauinger Woodstock Stacks, 279 JPII, B47

  • Cornwall, John, The Pontiff in Winter: Triumph and Conflict in the Reign of John Paul II. New York: Doubleday, 2004.
    Lauinger Stacks, BX1378.5 .C68 2004

  • Weigle, George, Witness to Hope: The Biography of Pope John Paul II. New York: Cliff Street Books, 1999.
    Lauinger Stacks, BX1378.5 W45 1999; Lauinger Woodstock Stacks, 279 JPII. W44

OTHER USEFUL MATERIALS

  • The Vatican (English site)
    http://www.vatican.va/phome_en.htm

  • Pope John Paul II Cultural Center
    http://www.jp2cc.org/index.asp
    Opened in March 2001 in Washington, D.C., the Cultural Center includes an interactive museum challenging visitors to explore their faith and to interact with others; an art museum featuring changing art exhibits from the Vatican Museums, as well as other art exhibits; and a place for scholarly research. The Web site provides general information about the Cultural Center and its events.

  • Catholic News Service
    http://www.catholicnews.com/
    "CNS is editorially independent and a financially self-sustaining division of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops."
  • Papal Succession (The Time Magazine)
    http://www.time.com/time/daily/special/papacy/how.html
  • Duffy, Eamon, Saints & Sinners: A History of the Popes. New Haven. Yale University Press, 2002.
    Lauinger Woodstock Stacks, 274.56 D874, S21

  • Kelly, J.N.D., The Oxford Dictionary of Popes. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 1988.
    REF, BX955.2 .K45 1988

  • Westlaw's POPESPEAKS database contains journal of recent papal letters, addresses, and other documents of the Roman Catholic Church (January 1, 2000 - May 1, 2005).

Revised September 16, 2005 (LT)

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