Cardinals of all ages gathered at the Vatican for a votive Mass today, as the cardinal electors will this afternoon begin the secret votes to elect a new pope.
91-year-old Cardinal Battista Re has been re-elected as Dean of the College of Cardinals, meaning the Vatican's current Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, will lead proceedings in a papal conclave if it happens before he turns 80 in 2035.
The 88-year-old bishop accused Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin of 'a trilogy of murdering the Church in China' and 'manipulating the Holy Father.'
We can get at the truth by retracing the whole history of the relations between the Holy See and China during the pontificate of Benedict XVI, from 2005 to 2013.