The cardinals involved in the papal conclave "have to start now reflecting and entering into that prayer and that decision to say, 'OK, I want to do not my own will, but the will of the father,'" Rev. Fr. Robert F. McKeon told Newsmax on Wednesday.
Catholic cardinals who will choose the next pope were locked behind the heavy wood doors of the Sistine Chapel on Wednesday, sequestered from the world to elect the man they hope can unite a diverse but divided global Church.
"I was reflecting this morning today's gospel was actually from the Gospel of John for daily mass," McKeon, the pastor at Saint Catherine of Alexandria Parish in the Archdiocese of New York, said on "National Report."
"And part of the word said Jesus, saying to the apostles, 'I have not come to do my own will, but the will of the father.' And that's what the cardinals literally were praying this morning together and hearing this morning. And that's what they have to do as well. Like Christ, they have to start now reflecting and entering into that prayer and that decision to say, 'OK, I want to do not my own will, but the will of the father.'"
So many parishes and individuals have been praying these last days "specifically for the cardinals because it's a sense of anticipation and a sense of they're looking forward to once again having a shepherd, the good Shepherd, as our Holy Father has chosen," McKeon told Newsmax.
"So, there's both that real prayerfulness and great excitement on seeing who's going to be chosen."
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