Update

Vatican City, Mar 13 (Reuters): Thick black smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel's chimney on Tuesday, signaling an inconclusive first vote in the conclave to elect a new pope at a time of strife and scandal for the Roman Catholic Church.

Thousands of faithful huddled in St. Peter's Square to watch the smoke pour out of the narrow flue in the rain-laden gloom following a day rich in ritual and pageantry.

Earlier, after praying for divine guidance, the red-hatted cardinals took a solemn vow in Latin never to divulge any details of their deliberations. They then secluded themselves behind the chapel's heavy wooden doors.

No conclave in the modern era has chosen a pope on its first day, and some cardinals speculated this week that it might take four or five days to pick the man to replace Pope Benedict, 85, who unexpectedly abdicated last month.

The so-called "Princes of the Church" will spend the night in a Vatican hotel before returning to the frescoed Sistine Chapel at 9:30 a.m. (0830 GMT) on Wednesday to continue voting, with two rounds set for the morning and two for the afternoon.

Until they choose a new pontiff, their only communication with the outside world will be the smoke from the Chapel chimney - black when voting sessions end with no result and white when a pontiff is elected.

The crowd's excited cheers when the first puffs of smoke emerged swiftly turned to disappointed sighs when they saw that it was signaling no surprise early decision.

"I am on vacation and can't believe how lucky I am to be here at this moment," said Patricia Purdy, a retired teacher from New York, adding it was time for a younger pope.

"It would be good if he was young, so he can relate to younger people and bring them closer to the Church."


No Obvious Candidate

Whoever becomes the 266th pontiff in the Church's 2,000-year history will face a daunting array of problems, including sex abuse scandals, infighting within the Vatican bureaucracy and the spread of secularism in its European heartland and beyond.

No clear-cut front runner has emerged, with some prelates pushing for a strong manager to control the much criticized central administration, known as the Curia, while others want a powerful pastor to promote their faith across the globe.

Italy's Angelo Scola and Brazil's Odilo Scherer are spoken of as strong contenders. The former would return the papacy to Italy after 35 years in the hands of Poland's John Paul II and the German Benedict XVI. Scherer would be the first non-European pope since Syrian-born Gregory III in the 8th century.

However, a host of other candidates have also been mentioned as "papabili" - potential popes - including U.S. cardinals Timothy Dolan and Sean O'Malley, Canada's Marc Ouellet and Argentina's Leonardo Sandri.

Latin chants accompanied the cardinals as they processed into the Sistine Chapel, with Michelangelo's depiction of Christ delivering the Last Judgment on the back wall and his image of the hand of God giving life to Adam on the ceiling.

The doors were shut at 5.34 p.m. (1634 GMT) after the master of ceremonies, Guido Marini, said "Extra Omnes" (Latin for "Everyone Out"), asking all those not associated with the gathering to leave the room.

Maltese Cardinal Prosper Grech, who at 87 is too old to participate in the voting, remained inside to give a sermon to remind the 115 cardinal electors of the gravity of their responsibility.

Looking Beyong Europe

Earlier, at a pre-conclave Mass in St. Peter's Basilica, Italian cardinal Angelo Sodano called for unity in the Church and urged his brother cardinals to support the future pope.

"My brothers, let us pray that the Lord will grant us a pontiff who will embrace this noble mission with a generous heart," he said in his homily.

There are constant reminders of the scandals and controversies facing the Church.

In the past month, the only British cardinal elector recused himself from the conclave and apologized for sexual misconduct.

Police detained two women who staged a brief topless protest against the Church before the massed ranks of television crews who have come from around the world to follow the conclave.

All the prelates in the Sistine Chapel were appointed by either Benedict XVI or John Paul II, and the next pontiff will almost certainly pursue their fierce defense of traditional moral teachings.

But Benedict and John Paul were criticized for failing to reform the Curia, and some churchmen believe the next pope must be a good chief executive or at least put a robust management team in place under him.

Vatican insiders say Scola, who has managed two big Italian dioceses without being part of the Vatican's central administration, could be well placed to understand its Byzantine politics and introduce swift reform.

The still-influential Curia is said by the same insiders to back Scherer, who worked in the Vatican's Congregation for Bishops for seven years before leading the Sao Paolo diocese - the largest in Brazil, the country with the most Catholics.

With only 24 percent of Catholics living in Europe, pressure is growing to choose a pontiff from elsewhere in the world who would bring a different perspective.

Latin American cardinals might worry more about poverty and the rise of evangelical churches than questions of materialism and sexual abuse that dominate in the West, while the growth of Islam is a major concern for the Church in Africa and Asia.

Earlier Report

Cardinals begin historic conclave to elect next pope

Vatican City, Mar 12 (Reuters): Roman Catholic cardinals prayed for divine help on Tuesday, hours before a conclave to elect a new pope to tackle the daunting problems facing the Church at one of the most difficult periods in its history.

The cardinals, including the 115 aged under 80 who will vote for the next pope, filed into St. Peter's Basilica as choirs sang at the ritual solemn Mass that precedes a conclave.

They prayed that God would inspire them to choose the right man to replace Pope Benedict, who abdicated abruptly last month saying he was not strong enough to confront the woes of a Church whose 1.2 billion members look to Rome for leadership.

The Mass was the last event for the cardinals as a group before they enter the Sistine Chapel on Tuesday afternoon and make their choice for the next pontiff before Michelangelo's famous fresco of the Last Judgment.

In his homily, Italy’s Angelo Sodano, dean of the cardinals, said they should pray “that the Lord will grant us a pontiff who will embrace this noble mission with a generous heart”.

He called for unity within the Church and urged everyone to work with the next pope, whoever he should be.

The secret conclave, steeped in ritual and prayer, could carry on for several days, with no clear favorite in sight.

Vatican insiders say Italy’s Angelo Scola and Brazil's Odilo Scherer have emerged as the men to beat. The former would bring the papacy back to Italy for the first time in 35 years, while the latter would be the first non-European pope in 1,300 years.

However, a host of other candidates from numerous nations have also been mentioned, including US cardinals Timothy Dolan and Sean O'Malley, Canada’s Marc Ouellet and Argentina’s Leonardo Sandri.Known as the "Princes of the Church”, the cardinals will only emerge from their seclusion once they have chosen the 266th pontiff in the 2,000-year history of the Church, which is beset by sex abuse scandals, bureaucratic infighting, financial difficulties and the rise of secularism.Many Catholics are looking to see positive changes.

“It’s not an anxious moment, but a moment of great hope. The first thing the Church should do is return to the lives of the people, instead of losing itself in theology,” said Italian Andrea Michieli, 22, who attended the Mass. “The new pope should give a young image of the Church so everyone sees the Church is not just the Curia,” he said referring the Vatican’s central bureaucracy which has been criticized for failing to prevent a string of mishaps during Benedict’s troubled, eight-year reign.

Mexican Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera told Italy’s La Stampa newspaper there were many different views about the right profile for the next pontiff, with some wanting an academic, others seeking someone close to the people, or else a good manager.

Asked if the conclave could therefore drag on, he said: “I do not think it will be long because there are diverse opinions. We will come to an agreement very quickly”.
The average length of the last nine conclaves was just over three days and none went on for more than five days.

Signaling the divisions among the cardinals, Italian newspapers reported on Tuesday an open clash between prelates in a pre-conclave meeting on Monday.

The newspapers said the Vatican hierarchy's number two under Benedict, Tarcisio Bertone, had accused Brazil's Joao Braz de Aviz of leaking critical comments to the media. Aviz reportedly retorted that the leaks were coming from the Curia, earning loud applause.