The Vatican announced Friday that the secret election, or conclave, to select a new pope will begin on Tuesday.  115 cardinals will enter the Sistine Chapel and elect a replacement for Benedict XVI, who became the first pope in over 500 years to resign from the position when he stepped down last week.

Once inside the chapel, the cardinals are sworn to secrecy and not allowed to leave the Vatican or make contact with the outside world until a pope is elected.  A two-thirds majority is required for a cardinal to be elected pope, at which point white smoke will be released from the chapel's chimney.  

Not all eligible cardinals will attend the conclave. Keith O'Brien of Scotland resigned last week following allegations that he made sexual advances towards seminary students.  "I wish to take this opportunity to admit that there have been times that my sexual conduct has fallen below the standards expected of me as a priest, archbishop and cardinal," he said in a statement.

Whoever is elected as the 266th leader of the Catholic Church will inherit a church mired in controversy and scandal, the biggest being the ongoing investigation into sexual abuse by priests.  The Survivor Network of Those Abused By Priests (SNAP), has released a list of twelve cardinals they believe should be blacklisted from the papacy.  Names include Cardinal Peter Turkson of Ghana, who is an early favorite to be elected; Cardinal Angelo Scola, the Archbishop of Milan whom The Guardian reports is considered the "reformist" candidate, and Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who is the leader of the Archdiocese of New York.  

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SNAP also presented a list of three candidates who they feel would be most likely to enact reform and transparency within the Church.  This list includes Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle from the Philippines, who has been a longtime advocate against sex abuse and who believes that the Church should not attempt to dodge scrutiny. 

In addition, a CBS News poll shows that many American Catholics are calling for the Vatican to enact major changes. Of 580 Catholic adults polled, 66 percent said they would rather have a younger pope with new ideas than an older one with more experience.  91 percent said the next Pope should favor the use of condoms to stop HIV and other sexually-transmitted diseases, and 69 percent said that priests should be able to marry and that women should become priests.  

The poll also asked whether the Catholic Church was in touch with the needs of its followers, to which 53% said 'no'.  Eighty-three percent believe that it is possible to disagree with the Pope on the above issues and still be a good Catholic, and 78 percent are more likely to follow their own conscience rather than the Pope's teachings on difficult moral issues.

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