White smoke over St. Peter’s Square announces unmistakably: the Chair of Peter is occupied again; a new pope has been elected. What name will he take? Because nomen est omen. The choice of the pope’s name is a process. It gives an initial indication of the direction in which the new Pope wants to steer the Church. The next pope can choose from 83 names that his predecessors have borne – or, like Francis, adopt a name that has never been used. The top pope names are “John” (23 times),…
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