Cardinal Seán O’Malley Is Not Your Next Pope

There's white smoke, but Boston's cardinal wasn't picked.

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(Photo via The Pilot/George Martell)

White smoke emerged from the Sistine Chapel chimney Wednesday, the second day of the papal conclave, after which the Vatican announced that the cardinals selected Argentinian Cardinal Bergoglio as the next pope (now known as Pope Francis). Speculation (in Boston in particular) surrounding our own Cardinal Seán O’Malley’s chances at taking on the role had actually gotten some serious consideration from the press in recent days, but alas, ’twas not to be. Even so, this is a momentous time for Boston area Catholics, who will get to know their church’s new leader in the coming months. Boston’s non-Catholics, of course, can go back to their regularly scheduled plans— i.e. not watching CNN’s Wolf Blitzer act out papal voting in a virtual Sistine Chapel.

NBC has a live feed of the announcement’s aftermath in the Vatican:

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