Vatican

As the College of Cardinals gathers for general congregations ahead of the upcoming conclave, Cardinal Gregorio Rosa Chávez of El Salvador described a calm and fraternal atmosphere among the group — one marked not by tension, but by prayer and unity of purpose.

Good-natured, affable and dedicated to dialogue, French Cardinal Jean-Marc Aveline of Marseille coordinates a churchwide network in the Mediterranean region, a mission he received from Pope Francis.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state since early in the pontificate of Pope Francis, has long been near the top of pundits’ lists of potential successors to the Argentine pope.

As the College of Cardinals gathers in Rome for the conclave that will elect our next pope, the rest of us may feel like we have no real role to play in the process.

Although not a familiar name in the U.S. press, Hungarian Cardinal Péter Erdo of Esztergom-Budapest, 72, is a major figure among his peers in Europe, the church’s traditional heartland and the region of about 38.5% of the cardinal electors.

As the Catholic Church’s cardinals prepare to elect a new pope, they must be wary of “elegant speeches” that hide a subtle cruelty toward the poor and vulnerable, said the Vatican’s former doctrinal chief.