No matter who the next pope is, US Catholics stand ‘at a crossroads’ − a sociologist explains

By Maureen K. Day, Research Fellow, Center for Religion and Civic Culture, University of Southern California

More than 130 cardinals entered the Sistine Chapel on May 7, 2025. With the announcement “Extra omnes” – “all out” – the doors have been closed and the cardinals sequestered to elect the next leader of the Catholic Church. They will vote, confer, pray and vote again until a candidate acquires the two-thirds majority needed to become pope.

Ten of the men voting this week are from the United States. The Conversation U.S. asked Maureen…

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~	Grattan on Friday: Bitter struggle in Liberals for likely poisoned chalice, as Jacinta Price defects from Nationals

~	Alberta has long accused Ottawa of trying to destroy its oil industry. That’s a dangerous myth

~	100 years of boom and bust: a potted history of Hollywood’s long relationship with Australia

~	Even as emissions level off, carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is growing faster than ever. Here’s why

~	Politics with Michelle Grattan: David Pocock wants us to aim for up to 90% reduction in emissions by 2035

~	Exiled Vietnamese blogger ‘Mother Mushroom’ calls for transnational solidarity

~	‘Everyone lives in fear’: trapped between two warring nuclear giants, the people of Kashmir continue to suffer

~	Greens’ election hubris – how the minor party lost its way and now its leader

~	In the age of the influencer, does the political backing of News Corp matter anymore?

~	Greece: Media Freedom in Crisis