Netizens pray, hope that a new pope will be chosen soon

Netizens called on the Catholic faithful to pray for “patience’ as black smoke billowed for the second time from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, indicating that a new pope has still not been chosen on Thursday, May 8, 2025. (Photo by Tiziana FABI / AFP)

MANILA, Philippines — Netizens called on the Catholic faithful to pray for “patience’ as black smoke billowed for the second time from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, indicating that a new pope has still not been elected on Thursday.

The Papal conclave began on Wednesday and is being participated in by 133 eligible cardinals around the world.

Netizens remain watchful for news on the second day of the conclave, expressing their hope that a new Supreme leader of the Catholic Church will be named already.

READ: Black smoke at the Vatican, no pope yet

“It is a calling to our God, let us all be patient. Bless all the Cardinals,” one netizen wrote to comment in an INQUIRER.net post.

“Holy Spirit, guide all Cardinals that they may choose the one according to your will. We pray. Amen,” another netizen wrote.

Filipino bishops earlier asked the faithful to pray for the conclave to elect the rightful Pope to lead the 1.4 billion Catholics around the world.

During his homily at the pre-conclave Holy Mass on Wednesday, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re called for unity of the Church despite its diversity.

Some netizens also pointed out that the election of a new Pope may take  a few more days, as they refer to the previous conclave in 2013 when the late Pope Francis was elected on the evening of the second day of the gathering of cardinals.

“Let us pray, matagal tagal pa ‘yan. Nakaka 2nd ballot pa lang,” a netizen said.

(Let us pray, it will take a long time. We just had our 2nd ballot.)

“Mahirap po kasi pagdesisyunan kung sino susunod na Santo Papa. Ipinagdarasal po yan… Hindi biro ang ginagawa nila,” another comment read.

(Deciding who the next pope will be is difficult. We pray for that… What they do is not a joke.)

READ: The 2025 Conclave: Electing a New Pope — Live Updates

There needs to be a two-third’s vote from the majority of votes, or 89 votes, to consider the successful Papal conclave. According to the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, the result of the second voting for Thursday may be expected around 11:30 p.m. (Manila time).

Filipino cardinals Pablo Virgilio David, Luis Antonio Tagle, and Jose Advincula are eligible for the cardinal election. This is the first time in Philippine history that three Filipino cardinals are participating in the conclave.