Gerard O’CONNELL. The Election of Pope Francis, An Insider Account of the Conclave that Changed History. New York: Orbis Books, 2019. Pp. 305. $26.00pb. ISBN 978-1-62698-425-7. Reviewed by Francis BERNA, La Salle University, Philadelphia, PA 19141

March 2023 will mark the tenth anniversary of the election of Pope Francis as the Bishop of Rome. Why then, should one read a book about his election? Certainly, much has already been written about him; and he’s written a good deal himself. Beyond learning a bit of history, O’Connell’s text gives insight into the Pope’s ministry as well as why the conclave chose to elect him.

   Without a doubt the resignation of Pope Benedict took the Cardinals, the Church, and the world by surprise. Part I of the book covers the days from Benedict’s announcement to his actual resignation, February 11-28, 2013. Having covered the Vatican as a journalist since 1985, the author uses his skills to relate events both profound and mundane. One section explains how the Cardinals are not prepared for a conclave. Speculation, discussion, and planning usually begin with the declining health of the Holy Father. Benedict was in good health and the resignation of a Pope had not occurred in centuries. His profound decision changed everything. On the mundane side, O’Connell describes how the Emeritus Pope would continue to wear a white cassock. The author weaves a wide range of facts together so that the reader can experience history as if reading a newspaper, magazine, or personal journal.

   In this section O’Connell, as he does at various points throughout the book, describes the personal relationship he and his family have had with Jorge Bergoglio. They have dinner upon his arrival in Rome and the relationship continues when the Pope phones the family after his election. Here, as well as elsewhere, one meets the Bishop of Rome as one who desires no special privileges. He is a pastor. O’Connell describes this more fully in Part IV addressing “Early Signs of a New Style of Papacy.” One section describes Francis as “The World’s Parish Priest.”

   The middle sections of the book render a day-by-day account of events from the day the See of Peter becomes vacant through the conclave and election of Francis, March 1 to the evening of March 13. Here the reader learns the dynamics of formal and informal meetings among the Cardinals prior to the conclave. Additionally, the reader gets a good glimpse into the secretive dynamics of the conclave made available only after some time has passed.

   As the cardinals arrive from around the world, they take up residence in various houses in the Vatican and around Rome. In some instances, cardinals from a particular country stay at the same place – seven of the eleven North American cardinals at the North American College. Here they will sometimes meet nightly to discuss issues facing the church, qualities needed by the next pope, and likely candidates. One can get a good feel for these conversations as well as those that take place over lunch and dinner at various residences and restaurants in the eternal city.

   New to this reviewer were the General Congregations held prior to the actual conclave. These meetings include all of the cardinals, both electors and non-electors – those over the age of eighty. These sessions allow the prelates to discuss the current situation of the church and qualities to consider in discerning whom the Holy Spirit is calling to the papacy. While intended to be “secret” journalists like O’Connell and others have their sources, and some cardinals are quite willing to talk discretely. Two observations from these sessions suggest why the electors gradually turned toward Bergoglio.

   After the second day of the General Congregations, someone leaked to the Italian journalist Andrea Tonelli that an influential cardinal stated that “We need a pope like Saint Francis, a man who knows how to smile like John Paul I, who can show the merciful face of God [to the world], and who knows how to reform the Curia and make it more credible and transparent” (p. 125). Vatileaks highlighted the need for curial reform. Other “leaks” noted the discussion of communion for divorced and remarried Catholics as well as the ordination of mature married men to the priesthood among other significant issues, including a council of advisors for the pope.

   O’Connell describes Day 6 of the General Congregations as a “turning point.” At this meeting Jorge Bergoglio gave a brief intervention. The book provides the full text. Here the Archbishop of Buenos Aires spoke of an Evangelizing Church and the need for a pope who contemplating Jesus Christ helps the church go to the existential peripheries, a man who lives from the “sweet and comforting joy of evangelizing” (p. 153-154). Silence filled the room.

   Going into the conclave the Cardinals swore to maintain strict secrecy. With the passing of time some details appropriately have come to light. Begoglio, though having some following, was not seen as a front-runner by most of the press, O’Connell being the exception. Describing some of the details of voting in the Sistine Chapel, the reader comes to see how and why the Cardinals chose to elect him. He was a man of prayer, he had long been listening to the poor, and he was a pastor who could again make the church credible to the world.

   Pope Francis accepted the election as Bishop of Rome as “God’s will.” His papacy continues to be a discernment of that movement of the Spirit evident in the General Congregations and his genuine concern for the poor and the marginalized – those on existential peripheries. The Election of Pope Francis helps one appreciate both history and the present moment.