Religious: French-canadian... Pope.

Okay, weird random idea that passed on my mind one day, albeit not so random...

You see, french-canadians descend of course from french settlers - France was called once a daughter (elder?) of the church, from it's religiosity in the Ancient Regime days (minus Lumières)... and due to the history of New France, the fall, british regime, the (lower) clergy was more or less pretty much the remaining elite, with some power increasing in times, specially after the 1837 events, to the 60s, Quiet Revolution and all. The so called Grande Noirceur before...

Your challenge so, if you take it, is to make a Pope of one of them. Making one a cardinal is not too hard I guess, it happened in recent days. But make one a papibili, pope...

The question of how, and what may happens, can be developed of course - a more religious even canada-north america, a more catholic land? would it strengten the conservatives, duplessis, etc?
 
I think the easiest way to get a Quebecois pope would be for our current Pope Benny to die before 2016, and Jean-Claude Turcott is elected as his successor.

I don't know anything about the political history of the Church, other than that they had a hard on for Italian popes, so I have no idea how to get a Quebecois pope pre-1900.
 
I think the easiest way to get a Quebecois pope would be for our current Pope Benny to die before 2016, and Jean-Claude Turcott is elected as his successor.

I don't know anything about the political history of the Church, other than that they had a hard on for Italian popes, so I have no idea how to get a Quebecois pope pre-1900.



An idea would be a more distant POD maybe, with harsher anti-catholics feelings in UK and Europe's protestant areas, a mass exile to New France maybe... A more populated area, and if later there is political games around europe and north america, maybe the 'Pope is Polish' effect...
 
We've had some respectable cardinals, but none that I can think of that were papabili

Your biggest problem is that J2P2 was the first non-Italian pope since the founding of Quebec. So you either have to arrange for non-Italian popes to appear a lot earlier or you have precisely two chances.

Be really, really difficult. IMO.
 
Marc Ouellet was considered papabili in the last conclave. The problem there, though, is that he has said numerous times he would never want the job. Of course, who knows how he would respond if he was actually chosen. I recall the Vegas odds of him being elected were not too bad either. Maybe if Ratzinger passes away before the conclave he'd have a better chance.
 
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