The Sede Vacante period isn’t just a time of dour mourning and anxious worry about what sort of Pope we are going to get next. There is a lighter aspect.
What regnal name with the next Pope take?
When a man has been elected, at the moment he accepts, he gains universal jurisdiction over the Church. Then he is asked “Quo nomine vis vocari?… By which name do you want to be called?” I’m pretty sure that every Cardinal has given that some thought whether they are realistically in the running or not. I think just about every cleric on earth has too. It’s just a little fun.
It’s entirely possible that a man might stick to his baptismal name, if it is also a name with a papal pedigree. I suspect that Card. Peter Erdö might freak out a lot of people if he did that.
There is an outside chance that some brand new name will be introduced to the long list. Hey, that happened last time, right? Results have varied.
Still, odds are that a more usual papal regnal name will be chosen.
I would be tempted to take the name Clement XIV the Second, just to make a point.
Let’s have a poll.
In what follows I left out Sixtus because “Sixtus VI” (in Italian even worse, “Sisto Sesto”. I also left out Hormisdas … (watch.. now it’ll be Hormisdas), Callixtus, Boniface, Alexander and a few more that have been repeats. I can’t list them all. I’ve left an option for some of the less well-known names and you can comment on that in the combox.
Anyone can vote. You can comment if you are registered and approved.
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But I do want a Sixtus the Sixth, a Xystus Sextus—think how batty it will drive the Baptists!
in 2013 i remember you procured cards to commemorate the election and such cards were blessed. i still have mine, though it has not been on display for a very long time. might you do the same again, Father?
btw i’d be shocked – in a good way – if there were a Gregory XVII. to me Leo XIV or Nicholas VI are the best reasonably likely options
If I had to put money down I’d say Francis II. I don’t think anybody wants to be JP3 that just seems like big shoes to fill. At least right now, maybe in another 15-20 years.
Now depending on *who* is elected, then yeah, I think we could see a Benedict XVII or Pius XIII.
I have been hoping for a Clement XV for years. That name alone will make the Jesuits tremble in fear. But then again, will a new Pope planning on suppressing the Jesuits choose that name? I don’t think so. Better to let them think it will be business as usual and drop the hammer when they least expect it. If a Clement XV in name is not an option, I would settle for one in deeds.
Susan I or Lisa I or Joan II?
(Kidding! It will be interesting to watch this process and see how much continuity vs course correction the Cardinals want to see. Cardinal Dolan is out today with remarks that took me by surprise.)
Putting on a bit of faith-based optimism I chose “Gregory XVII” and shocked and delighted to see that, for the time being, it proved to be the top choice. Somehow I knew Cardinal Ratzinger would take Benedict.
If I’m on the button this time I’m heading for Vegas.
I voted for John Paul III because St. JPII is now far enough (two papacies) removed that his name might signal a “balanced” course correction without scaring either side of the ideological spectrum too badly… my somewhat outré prediction would be be that if we get an African pope he will take the name “Joseph”. In addition to honoring the Patron of the Universal Church and signaling a focus on fatherhood and family, it would drive the media crazy (they’d be full of theories that the name was a “dog whistle” to the conservatives because it was really referring to Pope Ratzinger!)
May the old pope rest in peace… May the new pope be Catholic!
I did actually guess “Francis” a couple of hours before the last election, but this time I’m stumped.
Pope Martin VI would be a good choice IMO. Martin V was a great reconciler.
I think it would be wonderful to have a John Paul or Benedict, but I must say – I LOVE Iconophilious’s comment!!!
It has been a long time since it was used, but I would like Stephen X.
Although, if it is Erdo, I could see him being an Innocent.
Personally, I would choose “Patrick.”
Perhaps, Cardinal Pizzabella would choose, “James,” after his predecessor in the See of Jerusalem.
I would love a Pope Augustine (the ‘I’ I believe..)
Pope Miltiades II
Miltiades was also known as Melchiades the African.
I don’t expect Cardinals Sarah, Muller, or Burke to be elected so maybe a Cardinal from Africa.
I voted for “Francis II” although that choice would be a bad omen.
If I had to put money down I’d say Francis II
I remember this coming up at the beginning of Pope Francis’ pontificate when people were calling him Pope Francis I. I’d prefer to just move on from this. I still remember when WDTPRS started to stand for “What Did the Pope Really Say?”
I wonder what Cardinal Sarah has chosen for his papal moniker? One can hope (and pray), right? I’m starting to read of a “groundswell” of support, albeit small right now for him. May the Holy Spirit guide the Conclave and we can put the nightmare of Francis behind us!
I voted for a Pius XIII, not because I really expect it to be the chosen name of the next pope but because I would burst with joy if such a miracle were to happen. Pope Pius V and the last four popes of this blessed name were exceptionally strong and holy Vicars of Christ. After the continual shocks, suffering, deception and even embarrassment for twelve years under Francis, such a papal successor who chose the significantly anti-woke name of Pius would fill faithful Catholics with hope for the immediate future of our Holy Catholic Church.
Leo, as in Burke-
I voted for Paul VII because I believe the Cardinals, fearful of bad press from a lengthy Conclave, will quickly vote for Parolin. Maybe even by the end of the first full day.
My preference would be for someone to take the name Pius XIII, but there is no Cardinal among the 135 eligible who shares the vision that comes with the name.
I suppose if Erdo is elected he might take the name John Paul III, but I think the majority of the College wants the direction of the just concluded papacy but without the drama.
@PostCatholic: how about Karen I? HaHa!
Why not Cardinal Eijk of the Netherlands? He’s relatively young (71), was a physician in internal medicine (the smartest people in the field) before he entered the seminary, was made a cardinal by Pope Benedict, leans conservative, and was the product of a mixed marriage (Catholic + Protestant). His interest is medical ethics. He might be groundbreaking and take the name of CANISIUS after his Dutch forebear who did so much to stanch the spread of heresy during the Counter-Reformation.
Father, I’ve heard it was St Peter CANISIUS who wrote the second half of the Hail Mary starting with “Holy Mary, Mother of God…” True?
St Peter CANISIUS, pray for us!
Benedict or Pius would ease my mind.
I hope Pizzaballa is elected, for no other reason than it will be entertaining to hear the perpetual sede vacantists ( with whom I am currently in communion) call him Petesah Balls.
Here’s to Steven II the Third
I also would be joyful if Cardinal Sarah became pope. Pope AUGUSTINE after a fellow African.
I must say that this is fun.
However, if you say you would like this or that also say why!
“It sounds good” is a good enough answer.
“My cousin Vinny is named Zephyrinus!” is a good enough answer.
I said Stephen II III because Stephen II I died after three days and gets left out (is he even in St. Paul Outside the Walls?) and people go around saying there have been only 266 when there have been 267. Everyone acts as if Stephen II II was Stephen II I. But if the new pope is Stephen II III, this crass injustice can be put right.
I hope it isn’t Pope Elton John or Pope Liberace. With the cast of characters and uncle ted’s nephews there, I wouldn’t be surprised.
Leo, we need a lion right now. Trump II , probably wouldn’t fly.
Reading around about Formosus and Boniface and Stephen, as one does, I wonder if Romanus II would be a good or bad choice – but I do not think it a likely one. Akita made me suddenly wonder if Cardinal Eijk might consider Willibrord – though I do not think him likely to get the chance. Marcellus III has various things to commend it, but would probably seem too irenical. On this Feast, Pope George suggests itself…
Pope Lot would be an apt choice, but, sadly, how unlikely a one!
My preference would be for someone to take the name Pius XIII,
Ah, but then what of the Pope Pius clock?
I feel like it’s time for a Pope Polycarp. Depending upon who takes such a name, those of us who mix letters up, will make for an amusing time with Pope Polycrap. The number of times I misread Polycarp as Polycrap when I flip through my hand missal astounds me.
Perhaps someone might go for Pope Newman after St. Henry Cardinal Newman.
My money is on John XXIV because the new pope will be a centrist who desires to reach across the proverbial aisle and stitch up the ideological wounds inflicted upon the Church in recent decades. He will, therefore, want to associate himself with a pope of beloved memory. But, he will avoid Francis II, Benedict XVII, or Paul VII because they would be too controversial, and John Paul III likewise because it could be seen as trespassing on the legacy of the most universally-celebrated pope of our age. That leaves John XXIV, which allows him to allow people to think that he is aligning himself with Vatican II by choosing the name of the pope who called that council, but, at the same time, John is a very generic, unassuming, and uncontroversial name—though still a traditional one so as not to alienate conservatives. Everybody can be friends with a pope named John. Good ol’ Pope John.
Pius still sounds antisemitic (popular opinion), John 24 would be a very high number, any recent name carries too many implications (John Paul, Benedict, Francis).
I like Cyprian, like C. of Carthage, Leo, Linus, Clement, Charles, after Borromeus, Antony, after A the great.
Leo XIV and Nicholas VI because they hark back to popes who subsequent generations deemed them “the Great” yes, that was so with Gregory as well, but Gregory XVI is held in such odium by progressives that the name seems radioactive for at least a few more generations. fwiw i submit that Pius V should also have the appellation “the Great”
in the case of Leo, well, i have a particular attachment to Leo XIII of happy memory who had a role in my reception into the Church (tldr). in the case of Nicholas, it should spark a bit more interest in St. Nicholas of Myra and that would be a good portent for better relations with the separated brethren who hold him in exceptionally high regard.
PIUS XIII is my vote. It is what my heart wants. I am tired and just want to be catholic without all the constant worry about “what next.”
I am on the traditional side so there is that. Francis II, JPIII, Paul VII, would just provide more anxiety about what would be changing next. I want STABILITY and just want to be Catholic without ANY changes (except maybe more saints).
In the not very likely event my compatriot Cardinal Eijk (mentioned above) gets elected, I think he will choose Adrianus VII, after the only other Pope from The Netherlands to date (and last non-Italian until Saint John Paul II). His tomb is in Santa Maria dell’Anima and in his native Utrecht the large house he had built for his retirement still is still to be found. He never saw it.
What if Cardinal Sarah got the chance to consider taking the name Balthasar, who has acquired a certain widespread iconography, and could leave people wondering if there were implicit references to Hans Urs and to the reconciled possible-pirate Pope/Papal claimant, Baldassarre Cossa (who died as Cardinal Bishop of Frascati) – who, as a ‘John XXIII’, also gets me wondering what implications what numbering for a John would have (a matter I remember our Host discussing in some detail – perhaps more than once…). Maybe John Henry would be a simpler decision…
I hope it isn’t Luce – though with some purported Papabili, perhaps it is a real possibility.
Eric Sammons had a great comment on X: If Cardinal Pizzaballa is elected his most fitting name would be John XXIV so that he would then be Papa John.
If memory serves, there was a Pope Lando. Maybe a Pope Boba? Pope Chewie?
How about Pope Dominic? We could sure use some black & white truth and clarity.
PostCatholic – there was indeed a Pope Lando (iirc the last to not take a new regnal name on his election), hence my trivia question – ‘of the following star wars characters, which is also the name of a pope: Han, Lando, Luke, Obi-wan?’ of course most people guess Luke since they’ve heard that name in a church.
I’m still keeping my fingers crossed for a Pope Aquinas.
Leo XIV or Gregory XVII (harkening back to Leo the Great and Gregory the Great, as well as the last Leo and Gregory of the 1800s who drew a clear line against the Freemasons).
Clement XV (it was Clement XII who was the first pope to officially condemn the Freemasons), Urban IX (it was Urban II who initiated the First Crusade), and Innocent XIV are other possibilities.
But my personal preference remains with either Leo XIV or Gregory XVII.
I chose Pius, but Lando would be fun.
How about Pope Michael? I know a couple of larpers have used the name, but it’s time for the real deal to step onto that balcony to help defend us in the battle.
As I said for the last election, but maybe I’m right this time, it may be Leo XIV.
The reason is that the names Benedict XVII or Francis II or Paul VII are going to be interpreted as a political statement, to be silent of Pius XIII, much as we’d hope it to be the latter. And the Pope, especially (may God grant it) if he leans the right way, will probably wisely refrain from “in your face”-actions, at the very least in the very early period where the name-imposition happens.
So, taking a name from the old times whose last bearer is chiefly remembered for his social encyclical Rerum Novarum, and so is celebrated on both sides of the spectrum, seems the way to go.
For a similar reason, my second guess would be John XXIV, in remembrance of the dear, lovely and jovial (I am not being ironic, this is a good quality – a friend of mine put it this way “he really was what Pope Francis wanted to give the impression to be”) Pope St. John XXIII who was traditional and convoked the Second Vatican Council but didn’t have to do with its particular decisions and implementation.
Though if it should be Cardinal Pizzaballa, “Pope James” might sound logical too. Sure, Popes have hitherto not taken Apostle names (with “John” being the Baptist), nor Evangelist names except for Pope Mark (who had the name from birth). But then, we haven’t had a former Patriarch from Jerusalem in the Papacy before except St. Peter himself, and also, it’s not quite certain whether James The-Lord’s-Cousin and the Apostle James-of-Alphaeus really are the same person…