• Pope creates 21 new cardinals: a rundown
  • Pope stacks the deck for the next conclave
  • Rundown of papal contenders (papabile)
  • Consistory: who wasn’t invited to the party?
  • Why appoint cardinals who can’t vote?

John L. Allen Jr. is the editor of Crux, specializing in coverage of the Vatican and the Catholic Church. He has written eleven books on the Vatican and Catholic affairs, and also is a popular speaker...