The summons arrived quickly, just hours after the announcement on Monday, April 21, of Pope Francis's death. The cardinals were called by the dean, a sort of president of the sacred college, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, to gather in Rome and participate in the general congregations starting Tuesday morning at 9 am.

Scattered across all continents, the "princes of the Catholic Church" are, of course, expected to elect the new pope – those, at least, who are under 80 years old. Before that, and for at least 15 days, they will need to discuss day-to-day affairs before turning, during these daily assemblies, to the issues facing the Church and its challenges.

The task is vast, given the diverse profiles of the 252 cardinals, 135 of whom are electors, and the differing concerns from one part of the globe to another. It will then be up to the next pontiff to address the issues that impact the 1.4 billion Catholics in their faith, spirituality, practice, and relationship with the Church and the world.

Francis's successor will have to continue confronting the issue of sexual violence within the Church. Not a week goes by without a new case being revealed somewhere in the world. After a delayed awareness during a trip to Chile in 2018, Francis, born Jorge Bergoglio, took measures such as requiring clerics to report abuses to Rome and establishing a system to receive reports.

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