Shortly before the Cardinals entered the Sistine Hat on May 7 to begin the discussions about the election of the next Pope, a team of hard -core conservative Catholics has already begun to put pressure so that the next Pope is better aligned with their world.

A noisy faction that has previously defamed Pope Francis, describing him as a heretical, antipapa, even as an “antichrist” for his alleged liberal view, has long been backstage. Now that Pope Francis has died, they are seeing that this is the right time to hit, Politico comments.

The Conservatives were outraged by Francis’ most alternative attitude over homosexual associations and divorces, defending immigrants and a Vatican agreement with China that gave Beijing to the appointment of Catholic bishops.

Some conservative influencers are promoting far -right candidates, such as Athanasius Schneider, bishop in Kazakhstan, who claimed that refugees in Europe are a “mass invasion” leading to Islamism, Cardinal Robert Sarah, Donald Trump.

“We see a paradox that the leadership is more liberal, but there has been a huge number of transfers and a huge increase in traditional way of thinking,” said John Yep, CEO of Catholics for Catholics, who organized a cost of $ 1,000 at $ 1,000. “Cardinals realize that although some of the leaders may have liberal tendencies, they know that their flocks in their home country are actually tend to be more conservative. They will have this in mind as they will go to the concede. “

Even before Franciscan died on Easter Monday, a campaign of defamation of its reforms had begun, which came from a growing set of well -funded, conservative non -profit US -based universal universal groups, which cooperated with far -right politicians.

Their main goal was Cardinal Pietro Ponlin, second in the Franciscan hierarchy and the favorite to succeed him.

The influence of the Conservative Right can also benefit from the ever -increasing financial situation of the Vatican, with Reuters reporting an income deficit of reaching 83 million euros.

As the Vatican is said to be looking for external funding, the selection of the next pope could be vulnerable to rich right-wing donors in the US, a high-ranking church official at Politico said, adding that the issue was raised in pre-Konclavi meetings.

The next few days, before the start of Conclavium, which will decide on the next Pope, are critical, as conservative Catholics are trying to make their voice to hear the cardinals. However, even the conservative groups themselves recognize that they have a difficult battle ahead of them. With 80% of the cardinals being appointed by Francis, their best hope may be to prevent progressive candidates.

Cardinal George Pel, who died in 2020, was “an important factor, lobbyist and a key factor in power,” said a Vatican ambassador with strong links, but since he died “there is no clear leader of the herd”.

Hard -core people try everything, but given the results of Conclavium, they do not have much belief that the next Pope will be one of their own.

Intimidation tactics

One thing that has changed since the last 2013 conference is that Lobing has become digital. With the proliferation of conservative blogs and influencers on social media, the campaign this time “looks like nothing like what I’ve seen before,” said Stephen Schneck, a former director of the Institute of Political and Catholic Studies at the Catholic University. “A rushing flood of analyzes, views and real campaign from external groups and influencers is ongoing,” he said, saying that its immediacy and range could make the difference.

The dominant candidates are concerned about what can happen. A video by Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, most likely to succeed Francis, singing a karaoke performance by John Lennon’s Imagine, was published by the right website LifeSitenews, with critics claiming lyrics such as “Imagine There’s No Heaven”.

“They know that they do not come out numerically, so the goal is to intimidate the reformers,” said veteran Vatican observer and journalist Marko Politi. “The message they broadcast is:” Look, you can’t choose a Franciscan II. It’s a psychological game. “

But when the cardinals are found in the Sistine Hat to choose the new Pope they are removed from external interventions with all scenarios possible.