A Last Audience With the Pope

By Jeff Israely

Christoph Cardinal Schoenborn was standing tall among the faithful. Just minutes after John Paul II's funeral ended, the 60-year-old Austrian was moving briskly through a thick crowd along the ancient Borgo Santo Spirito. With his flowing scarlet robes, robust frame and handsome features, the Austrian Cardinal attracted calls of "Cardinale, Cardinale" from several young Italians, even though they seemed not to know which Cardinal he was. But my colleague Jordan Bonfante and I knew, and we followed him.

The Archbishop of Vienna is a theological heavyweight, speaks six languages and possesses unquestioned pastoral skills. He is, in other words, papabile, one of the dozen or so leading contenders to succeed John Paul. "He looks like a Pope," quipped a Vatican official who observed him in the basilica last week. But on Friday the usually accessible Schoenborn wasn't talking, not even when asked about his feelings on bidding the Pope goodbye. Taking my right hand in his large, soft hands, the cleric leaned closer. "Now is the time," he said in perfect English, "for silence and prayer."

The reluctance to speak publicly is a sign that the campaign for succession begins in earnest this week, with formal and informal talks among the Cardinals, leading up to the April 18 start of the conclave. In fact, once he was clear of the crowds, Schoenborn spoke quietly on a cell phone for nine minutes as he continued to walk along the cobblestone streets, passing by the Piazza San Agostino, site of the Rome offices of Opus Dei, the powerful conservative lay group that some believe is quietly trying to influence the race, and several of the trattorias where Cardinals have gathered at other times.

After 20 minutes, Schoenborn ducked into the bronze-gilded, Vatican-owned Via della Scrofa, where he is staying along with several brother Cardinals. There they can share silence and prayer over the next few days. But there will be intense conversations too. --By Jeff Israely/Rome

For more about who will be the next Pope, read Jeff Israely's daily Vatican Diary at time.com/diary