On May 7, when over 130 cardinals enter the Sistine Chapel to vote for the next pope, one Cardinal Angelo Becciu cardinal will be left out in the cold.
Becciu, a former power player before his involvement in a Vatican financial scandal led him to resign his positions and renounce some of the privileges of being a cardinal said on Tuesday that has withdrawn from the forthcoming conclave to elect new Pope, ending days of drama that had overshadowed the proceedings.
In a statement issued by his lawyer cardinal Becciu said he was withdrawing from the conclave for the good of the church and vowed to obey “the will of Pope Francis to not enter into the conclave, even though he remains convinced of his innocence.
“I have decided to obey as I have always done Pope Francis’ will not to enter the conclave while remaining convinced of my innocence,” . “I obey (Pope) Francis, I will not enter the conclave for the good of the Church.”, Cardinal Becciu
His status has dominated discussions in the days after Pope Francis’ death amid questions about whether he would participate in the conclave to elect Francis’ successor or not.
Becciu was once an influential Vatican chief of staff who was a leading papal contender himself, fell from grace in 2020 when Francis forced him to resign his job as head of the Vatican’s saint-making office and his rights as a cardinal because of allegations of financial misconduct.
After his 2020 downfall, Becciu had said he would not participate in any future conclave. But in recent days he had asserted he had a right to enter the Sistine Chapel with other cardinals on May 7.
Becciu denied wrongdoing but was put on trial in the Vatican criminal court and convicted of finance-related charges in December 2023.
He is appealing the conviction and 5 1/2-year prison sentence and had participated in the pre-conclave meetings, including on Monday.
Becciu’s withdrawal doesn’t affect the Vatican’s official statistics about the conclave because internally it never considered him eligible to vote.
There remain 135 cardinal electors, though Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni confirmed Tuesday that two had formally announced they weren’t coming due to health reasons, bringing the number of electors down to 133.
Becciu is under the age limit of 80 and technically eligible to vote, but the Vatican’s official statistics list him as a “non-elector.”
Becciu’s reference to Francis’ will in his statement Tuesday suggests that the letters were the tipping point that convinced him to withdraw from the vote.
While he initially became a close adviser to Pope Francis, Becciu’s subsequent downfall at the hands of Francis might suggest he would have voted for someone keen to undo some of Francis’ reforms.
After he forced Becciu’s resignation, Francis visited Becciu on occasions and allowed him to participate in the life of the Vatican. But Francis also changed Vatican law to allow the city state’s criminal tribunal to prosecute him.
Questions, meanwhile, have continued to swirl about the integrity of the trial that convicted Becciu and eight others. During the proceedings, the court heard that Francis intervened on several occasions on behalf of the prosecutors and that the prosecution’s prime witness against Becciu was coached and manipulated by outsiders.
Defense lawyers discovered that the pope had secretly issued four decrees during the investigation to benefit prosecutors, allowing them to conduct intercepts and detain suspects without a judge’s warrant.
Lawyers cried foul, arguing such interference by an absolute monarch in a legal system where the pope exercises supreme legislative, executive and judicial power violated their clients’ fundamental rights and robbed them of a fair trial.
The tribunal rejected their objections, but in recent weeks even more evidence has emerged about the outside manipulation of the witness and apparent collusion with Vatican prosecutors and gendarmes to target Becciu.
The appeal is scheduled to begin in September.
