Content Warning: This section of the guide references sexual abuse, biased language against Black people and Muslims, and biased attitudes and language towards intersex people.

Jacopo Cardinal Lomeli, the Dean of the College of Cardinals, rushes to the Casa Santa Marta upon hearing that the pope’s death is imminent. The pope resides in the same small room he occupied during the conclave that elected him, instead of his larger, luxurious apartment at the Apostolic Palace. When Lomeli arrives at the papal apartment, he is surprised to learn that he is the last of the senior Vatican officials to arrive. 

The pope’s confessor, Joshua Cardinal Adeyemi of Nigeria, begins praying the liturgy to bless the pontiff in his final moments. Lomeli is unmoved by the prayer, having recently experienced a crisis of faith that rendered all his attempts at prayer meaningless. Shortly after a bout with prostate cancer that went into remission, Lomeli asked to resign to monastic life. The pope rejected his request during their last meeting, indicating that he needed Lomeli at the Vatican. He stressed that Lomeli was a “manager,” not a “shepherd.”

After announcing the pope’s death, the Camerlengo, Joseph Cardinal Tremblay of Canada, orders the removal of the late pope’s ring to signal the papal throne’s vacancy.