Tuesday's News & Ideas - 4/22/2025

Who will be next pope after Francis? Key contenders ahead of conclave.*
The Washington Post: Ahead of the conclave to select the next pope, names circulating include cardinals Bo of Myanmar, Tagle of the Philippines and Italians Pizzaballa and Parolin.

How Francis, a progressive Pope, catalyzed the Catholic right in the U.S.*
The New York Times: His critics were fellow clergy as well as elected officials in the ascendant wing of the American Catholic political realm.

‘He felt our pain’: Catholic church in Gaza grieves Pope Francis’s death
The Guardian: Pope made nightly phone calls to the Holy Family Catholic church from the start of the war in October 2023.

Holding tickets for Rome, Vatican pilgrims pivot from saint canonization to papal funeral
Religion News Service: Tens of thousands of people planned to be at the Vatican this week for the canonization of Carlo Acutis, the first millennial saint.

White supremacy and the Latino vote*
The Christian Century: Journalist Paola Ramos takes a nuanced look at the world of right-wing Latinos, revealing the logic behind their ideology.

The Spark

A mystic, a poet, an old friend: The enduring power of Rumi
“In the midst of life’s challenges, his lines are lifelines,” Haleh Liza Gafori writes at Lit Hub.

*access is limited for nonsubscribers