Continuity or rupture: what direction for the next Pope?

Speculation swirls as cardinals prepare to elect a new pope, with questions about continuity or change in the Catholic Church.

For years, traditionalists raged at Pope Francis’ liberal approach. The question now is whether his successor will walk the same path, or take the Catholic Church in a new direction.

Cardinals will meet within days for a conclave to elect a new pontiff, sparking fevered speculation about how the next Pope will guide the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.

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But experts say that despite his reforms, Pope Francis did not change fundamental doctrine — suggesting the next leader could bring a fresh style and different priorities, but is unlikely to upend 2,000-years of belief.

“Whether on the issues of abortion, the end of life, marriage for priests, the ordination of women, or homosexuality, which were points of traditional conservative doctrine, Francis has changed nothing,” said Francois Mabille, director of the Geopolitical Observatory of Religion.

The Argentine certainly took some radical steps. He made institutional changes, lifted the veil of papal secrecy over child sex abuse, limited the use of the Latin mass, and opened the door to blessings of same-sex couples.

He emphasised humility, wasted no opportunity to speak out for the voiceless and lambast the powerful, while promising to open the Church to all, epitomised by his remark on gay believers: “Who am I to judge?”.