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Papal conclave, August 1978

Dates	August 25–August 26, 1978
Location	Sistine Chapel, Apostolic Palace, Vatican City
Dean	Carlo Confalonieri
Vice Dean	Paolo Marella
Camerlengo	Jean-Marie Villot
Protodeacon	Pericle Felici
Ballots	Pope elected after 4 ballots
Elected Pope	Albino Luciani (took name John Paul I)

The Papal conclave of August 1978, the first of the two conclaves held in the year 1978, was convoked after the death of Pope Paul VI on August 6 at Castel Gandolfo. After the cardinal electors assembled in Rome, the conclave to elect Paul's successor began on August 25 and ended the next day, on 26 August, after four ballots. The cardinals elected Albino Cardinal Luciani, then Patriarch of Venice, as the new pope. He accepted the election and took the pontifical name of John Paul I.

Contents 1 Proceedings 2 Papabili and Course of balloting 3 Eligibility to vote and alleged results 3.1 Yallop tally 3.2 Burkle-Young tally 3.3 Thomas-Witts tally 4 See also 5 Trivia 6 References

The conclave was held from August 25 to August 26, at the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. Proceedings on August 25 included of a Mass celebrated at St. Peter's Basilica by the cardinal electors for divine guidance in their task to elect Pope Paul's successor. Six hours later, the cardinals processed into the Sistine Chapel whilst the chapel choir sang the hymn Veni Creator Spiritus. Archbishop Virgilio Noè, the Papal Master of Ceremonies, gave the traditional command of Extra omnes ("Everybody out!"), the doors were locked, and then the actual conclave began.

Because the conclave took place during the summer and no windows were permitted to be open in the chapel, the heat was almost unbearable. It was so hot even outside the conclave that the American John Cardinal Cody took three showers in one night to cool himself. Up to this point in time, the conclave of August 1978 was the largest ever assembled. Thus, to accommodate the electors, the traditional canopied thrones were replaced with twelve long tables. Karol Cardinal Wojtyła, Aloísio Cardinal Lorscheider, and Bernardin Cardinal Gantin allegedly served as scrutineers during the balloting.

The cardinals electors were looking not for a Curial bureaucrat, but rather a warm, pastoral figure along the lines of Pope John XXIII. They also wanted an Italian, given the influential papal role in Italian politics. Among the papabili, or likely candidates to be elected pope, were Giuseppe Cardinal Siri of Genoa, Corrado Cardinal Ursi of Naples, and Giovanni Cardinal Benelli of Florence. However, Cardinal Benelli actually favoured Albino Cardinal Luciani of Venice, who was eventually elected as a candidate of compromise after four ballots; during the third ballot, Johannes Cardinal Willebrands and António Cardinal Ribeiro, who sat on either side of the Venetian patriarch, whispered words of encouragement to him as he continued to receive more votes. After Jean-Marie Villot officially asked Luciani whether he accepted his election, he humbly exclaimed, "May God forgive you for what you have done," before accepting. In honor of his two immediate predecessors, he took John Paul I as his regnal name.

At 6:24 p.m., the first signs of smoke—whose colour signifies the success or failure of an election—from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel appeared. However, it was unclear which colour the smoke was for over an hour; some of the cardinals had personally deposited their notes and tally sheets in the stove, causing black smoke after white had already appeared. Pericle Cardinal Felici, as the ranking Cardinal Deacon, then stepped onto the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica and delivered the Habemus Papam announcement in Latin, declaring Luciani's election. John Paul then too appeared on the balcony; shortly after his withdrawal, the crowd's applause remained so loud that he was compelled to appear again.

This conclave was unique in the fact that the future Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI were also present. This made it the first conclave since 1721 in which three future popes participated, and the first since 1829 in which there had been more than one.

Several authors have provided what they claim to be the vote totals at the conclave. Although this evidence must be viewed as questionable, it cannot be dismissed out of hand. Details of a conclave cannot be revealed by those involved under pain of excommunication, but this was the first conclave which excluded cardinals over the age of 80 (their ineligibilty having been decreed by Paul VI in 1970). Cardinals over 80 are still allowed to participate in the preparatory meetings, but during the 1978 conclaves, they were not required to take the same oath of secrecy as the electors. It is possible that one of these elderly cardinals may have revealed things they learned, though after the preparatory meetings were over the superannuated cardinals never entered the conclave itself. Also, cardinals under 80 were not required to destroy all notes they took during the conclave.

Under the rules introduced for the 2005 conclave, cardinals over 80 are required to take the same oath of secrecy if they want to participate in the preparatory meetings. All cardinal electors are required to surrender any notes they may have taken in order to be burned along with ballots.

As presented by David Yallop in In God's Name (ISBN 0-553-05073-7), a book which claims that John Paul I was murdered:

• First Ballot: Siri 25, Luciani 23, Pignedoli 18, Lorscheider 12, Baggio 9, scattered 24.

• Second Ballot: Siri 35, Luciani 30, Pignedoli 15, Lorscheider 12, scattered 19.

• Third Ballot: Luciani 68, Siri 15, Pignedoli 10, scattered 18.

• Fourth Ballot: Luciani 99, Siri 11, Lorscheider 1 (cast by Luciani).

As presented by Francis A. Burkle-Young in PASSING THE KEYS (ISBN 1-56833-130-4):

• First Ballot: Siri 25, Luciani 23, Pignedoli 18, Baggio 9, König 8, Bertoli 5, Pironio 4, Felici 2, Lorscheider 2, and 15 others one each.

• Second Ballot: Luciani 53, Siri 24, Pignedoli 15, Lorscheider, Baggio, Cordeiro, Wojtyła 4 each, Felici 3.

• Third Ballot: Luciani 92, Pignedoli 17, Lorscheider 2.

• Fourth Ballot: Luciani 102, Lorscheider 1 (cast by Luciani), Nemini (no one) 8.

As presented by Gordon Thomas and Max Morgan-Witts in PONTIFF (ISBN 0-451-12951-2):

• First Ballot: same as Burkle-Young's count except 5 votes for Pironio, fourteen candidates with 1.

• Second Ballot: Luciani 46, Pignedoli 19, Lorscheider 14, Baggio 11, Bertoli 4, others unspecified.

• Third Ballot: Luciani 66, Pignedoli 21, Lorscheider 1 (cast by Aramburu), others unspecified.

• Fourth Ballot: Luciani 96, Pignedoli 10, Lorscheider 1 (cast by Aramburu).

• Cardinal electors in Papal conclaves, August and October 1978
• Cardinals over 80 in 1978 Papal conclaves

• According John Paul I himself, he sat facing Cardinal Wojtyła (the future Pope John Paul II) during the conclave.
• This conclave was one of the plot elements of the movie The Godfather Part III.

• The Conclave: August 25th - 26th 1978
• How a Pope is Elected
• A Swift, Stunning Choice

PAPAL CONCLAVE, AUGUST 1978

Duration	2 days
Number of ballots	4
Electors	111
Africa	13
Latin America	19
North America	11
Asia	8
Europe	56
Oceania	4
Italians	26
DECEASED POPE	PAUL VI (1963-1978)
NEW POPE	JOHN PAUL I (1978)

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