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.

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.

All but four of the 135 cardinals who are eligible to enter the conclave May 7 to vote for a new pope had arrived in Rome by May 2, according to the Vatican press office.

The extensive role of the cardinals in today’s papal elections and in the church can be traced to the 11th century and Pope Nicholas II.

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.

French Cardinal Christophe Pierre, 79, has worked the past 48 years in the Vatican’s diplomatic service, most recently as papal nuncio to the United States for the past nine years.

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.

The challenge of leading a Catholic flock of 1.4 billion, from that moment on, will be on his shoulders. From theologians to Vatican insiders, there’s agreement that the next pontiff must balance deep faith with sharp governance.

St. John Paul II had the Domus Sanctae Marthae built primarily to house cardinals in simple comfort during a conclave.