ROME (AP) 鈥 Pope Francis' three-hour surgery Wednesday raised a question about what happens to papal power when a pope is unconscious or otherwise incapacitated and cannot lead the Catholic Church.
The answer: nothing.
While many countries regulate the transfer of power when a head of state becomes incapacitated, and the Vatican has governance norms when a pope resigns or dies, none of those regulations apply to a sick, unconscious or hospitalized pope.
In other words, Pope Francis was still pope, fully in charge of running the Vatican and the 1.3-billion strong Catholic Church, even while under general anesthesia and undergoing in his abdominal wall. The Vatican said there were no complications and that he was expected to be hospitalized for several days.
No, the Vatican camerlengo, or chaimberlan, didn't take over. No, the Vatican No. 2 didn't step in.
鈥淎 brief period of impediment doesn鈥檛 create any problems,鈥 said Geraldina Boni, professor of canon law at the University of Bologna and a consultant for the Vatican鈥檚 legal office. 鈥淭he curial machine proceeds normally with ordinary administration.鈥
To wit: the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, was out and about on Wednesday, presiding over the inauguration of an information center for pilgrims coming to Rome for the 2025 Jubilee. Shortly after Francis was admitted to the hospital, the Vatican鈥檚 daily noon bulletin came out with Francis' new bishop appointments.
鈥淭he pope continues to act, even from the hospital,鈥 said the Rev. Filippo Di Giacomo, a canonical expert and commentator. 鈥淓ven when he鈥檚 facing painful moments like this, his power acts in the people who received vicarious power from him.鈥
Canon law does have provisions for when a bishop gets sick and can鈥檛 run his diocese, but none for a pope. Canon 412 says a diocese can be declared 鈥渋mpeded鈥 if its bishop 鈥 due to 鈥渃aptivity, banishment, exile, or incapacity鈥 鈥 cannot fulfill his pastoral functions. In such cases, the day-to-day running of the diocese shifts to an auxiliary bishop, a vicar general or someone else.
Even though Francis is the bishop of Rome, no explicit provision exists for the pope if he similarly becomes 鈥渋mpeded.鈥 Canon 335 declares simply that when the Holy See is 鈥渧acant or entirely impeded,鈥 nothing can be altered in the governance of the church. But it doesn鈥檛 say what it means for the Holy See to be 鈥渆ntirely impeded鈥 or what provisions might come into play if it ever were.
Recently, a team of canon lawyers set out to propose norms to fill that legislative gap. They created a in 2021 to craft a new church law regulating the office of a retired pope as well as norms to apply when a pope is unable to govern, either temporarily or permanently.
鈥淚f the condition of a totally incapacitated pope goes on for months or even years, it鈥檚 clear that this creates great harm for the church and the good of its souls,鈥 said Boni, who is one of the initiative鈥檚 organizers. 鈥淲e need norms that identify the people or organisms to deal with the problems that cannot be put off long-term.鈥
The eight-page set of proposed norms explains that with medical advancements, it鈥檚 entirely likely that at some point a pope will be alive but unable to govern. It argues that the church must provide for the declaration of an 鈥渢otally impeded see鈥 and the transfer of power for the sake of its own unity.
Under the proposed norms, the governance of the universal church would pass to the College of Cardinals. In the case of a temporary impediment, they would name a commission to govern, with periodical medical checks every six months to determine the status of the pope.
鈥淚f, with all the possible guarantees and procedures defined, it is verified that the Roman See is impeded by a certain, permanent and incurable incapacity of a pope, it鈥檚 necessary to proceed toward the election of his successor,鈥 Boni said in an email.
There is no indication Francis is moving on the proposals, which seek to fill the legislative loophole that the 25th Amendment filled in the U.S. 鈥 to oversee the transfer of power in case a president dies or becomes incapacitated.
Francis recently revealed, however, that he had already penned a letter of resignation if he were to become incapacitated for a medical reason. In a December interview with Spanish newspaper ABC, Francis said he had given the letter to the then-secretary of state early on in his papacy, but didn鈥檛 know what became of it.
For now, unless his letter fulfills the legal requirements, papal power would only change hands if he dies or resigns. At that time a whole series of rites and rituals comes into play governing the 鈥渋nterregnum鈥 鈥 the period between the end of one pontificate and the election of a new pope.
During that period, known as the 鈥渟ede vacante,鈥 or 鈥渆mpty See,鈥 the camerlengo, or chamberlain, runs the administration and finances of the Holy See. The position is currently held by Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the head of the Vatican鈥檚 laity office. But he has no role or duties if the pope is merely sick or otherwise incapacitated.
In 1965, Pope Paul VI wrote letters to the dean of the College of Cardinals hypothesizing that if he were to become seriously ill, the dean and other cardinals should accept his resignation.
In one letter, published in 2018, Paul cited an infirmity 鈥渨hich is presumed incurable or of long duration and which prevents us from sufficiently exercising the functions of our apostolic ministry.鈥
The letter was never invoked, since Paul lived another 13 years and died on the job.
But experts say Paul鈥檚 letter was unlikely to have ever been used since current canon law requires a papal resignation be 鈥渇reely and properly manifested鈥 鈥 as was the case when Pope Benedict XVI announced his resignation in 2013.
Boni noted the faults in Paul鈥檚 letter and said she hoped Francis's own set of instructions took them into account.
鈥淚 only hope Francis sought collaboration from expert canonists,鈥 she said.
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This version corrects the second reference of Boni, not Bondi.
Trisha Thomas contributed.
