Conclave Ending, Explained: What is Cardinal Vincent Benitez’s Secret?

At the end of ‘Conclave,‘ Cardinal Thomas Lawrence grapples with his diminishing faith and a papal conclave rife with secret agendas and corruption. However, a new hope presents itself through an unlikely candidate who is overlooked throughout the election process until the final moments. Still, a nagging feeling persists within the Dean as he tries to figure out the truth behind the new pope’s legitimacy and whether he is who he says he is. Additionally, his previous altercations with morally bankrupt suitors have left him jaded and wanting to reestablish some manner of weight to the orthodoxy. It culminates with Lawrence having to reflect upon his responsibilities and duty to abide by the rules set down by God, except they prove insufficient in light of a major twist towards the end. SPOILERS AHEAD.

Conclave Plot Synopsis

‘Conclave’ begins in the wake of the pope’s death, which causes a massive ripple of shock to pass through the clergymen and women of the Vatican. The pope’s closest attendees, Cardinal Thomas Lawrence and Cardinal Aldo Bellini, try to figure out the cause behind his passing, which happens to be a case of a heart attack. Although still mourning his death, Lawrence is made responsible for organizing the papal conclave to elect the next pope. As Lawrence, Bellini, and Cardinal Joseph Tremblay, another close associate, are of a liberal persuasion like the recently deceased pontiff, they hope to elevate another liberal cardinal to the post of supreme head of the church. However, Lawrence clarifies that he has no wish to ascend to the throne, casting his support for Bellini instead.

A few weeks later, the conclave is set to begin as cardinals from all around the globe enter the halls of the College of Cardinals, where they are to be sequestered until the new pope is elected through a round of ballot votes. Lawrence welcomes the large cohort of priests, including the suitors for the pope’s position, which include cardinals Goffredo Tedesco, Joshua Adeyemi, Bellini, Tremblay, and a new arrival named Vincent Benitez, a Mexican-origin cardinal situated in Kabul, Afghanistan. With so many matters on his mind, Lawrence is annoyed to find out that Archbishop Janusz Woźniak, the late pope’s assistant, wants to divulge critical information about Tremblay’s last meeting with the pope hours before the elections are set to go off. In it, Woźniak reveals that the pope fired Tremblay before the latter’s death.

Troubled by the whisperings of a brewing conspiracy, Lawrence begins investigating Tremblay with the help of his confidante, Monsignor Raymond O’Malley. More dirt seems to emerge on other election candidates like Cardinal Joshua Adeyemi, whose beau from thirty years ago appears during the conclave elections. Subsequently, Adeyemi loses his support in light of a potential sexual scandal. Eventually, Lawrence also unspools the corruption of Cardinal Tremblay, who was involved in simony and disreputed Adeyemi. As more and more candidates seem unfit for the job, Lawrence is faced with the scary possibility of having to take the cudgel himself, despite not wanting it in light of his crisis of faith. Fortunately, a shining beacon of hope presents itself through a genuinely sincere candidate.

Conclave Ending: How Does Cardinal Vincent Benitez Become the Pope?

Through its papal election storyline, ‘Conclave’ manages to capture the vagaries of politics in a microcosmic environment that reflects many of society’s contemporary beliefs. However, they are often overridden by the strict beliefs on either side of a political divide rather than what is authentic. As such, each candidate in the elections shows themselves to be less than who they advertise themselves to be, brimming with flaws and inadequacies. At one point, someone even mentions that no ideal leader with the perfect message exists in the world of mortal men. Instead, the choice is always between two lesser evils. Thus, it comes as no surprise that the conclave ends with the only suitor without any so-called blemishes in his past, Cardinal Vincent Benitez.

Throughout the narrative, everyone overlooks Benitez as a potential successor to the pope. Part of the reason why he is never brought into the conversation lies in his lesser-known reputation among the other cardinals and his own support for Thomas Lawrence. Instead of casting votes for himself, Benitez continues to vote for Lawrence, deeming him the most worthy successor of the former pope. However, he gets his chance to shine when he wows the dissident cardinals in the theater after a suicide bombing outside the college blasts through two of its windows. He urges everyone to show tolerance and uses the same sincere tone that is present in Lawrence’s homily from earlier. It is a throwback to how Lawrence expressed a need for the next pope to be a doubter, a lot of which already exists within Benitez’s character.

Thus, in the following voting round, Benitez wins the election, gaining many followers after his impassioned speech. It also relieves Lawrence to see him emerge as a victor as he was finding it increasingly difficult not to fight for the papacy, especially as it might end up in the hands of Cardinal Tedesco. The protagonist’s interactions with Benitez opened his mind regarding the man’s authenticity. He judged him to be a man of principle and a purer soul in comparison to the others, making him the ideal candidate out of everyone in the mix and a worthy winner.

What is Cardinal Vincent Benitez’s Gender? Why Doesn’t He Undergo a Hysterectomy?

After the election results and Benitez’s elevation to Pope Innocent, Thomas Lawrence is happy with the way things worked out. As he had spent the entirety of the conclave worrying about his responsibility to ensure the right person was elected, Benitez’s election was a massive weight off his shoulders. However, the relief is short-lived as Lawrence learns from Monsignor Raymond O’Malley that Benitez, too, hides a secret of his own. The protagonist confronts Benitez about the information, which he reveals honestly. As it turns out, the Mexican-born cardinal is an intersex person with fully formed male and female reproductive organs. The former pope knew about this and had arranged for Benitez to undergo a hysterectomy, which the latter had pulled out of.

For years, the church had been a male-dominated orthodoxy where priests had to fit into a particular box. However, Benitez had never fit into any boxes growing up because of inhabiting two worlds at the same time. When the matter was explained to him, Benitez was ashamed of his body and how he was committing sin by being a priest. It tortured him for a long time until he met the former pope, who provided a solution through a hysterectomy if he wished to purge himself of his female organs. Still, Benitez decided not to go through with it because he finally realized that his body was how God had made it. If he were to subject it to invasive surgery, he was basically playing with God’s intentions for him, which he believed were always right in one way or another.

Additionally, Benitez also reveals to Lawrence that his homily had contributed to his belief in his body’s sanctity. He was particularly moved by his emphasis on the word “uncertainty,” which he felt was embodied perfectly in his own anatomy. He thought it to be a gift in a world where the future was looking increasingly uncertain, promising to utilize his unique vantage point as a person between two worlds to usher positive change through the means of spirituality.

Why Doesn’t Cardinal Lawrence Reveal Benitez’s Gender?

The truth behind Vincent Benitez’s gender shocks Thomas Lawrence and leaves him dumbfounded. It also carries on the pattern of each conclave candidate hiding some secret in their past. Yet, out of all of them, Benitez’s one is the most staggering, as it could shake the very foundations of Christianity. With the new pope being an intersex person, it opens the door for a variety of discussions that will undoubtedly set a massive pendulum in motion – whether good or bad. Still, given Lawrence’s consistency in promoting transparency during the elections, especially in relation to Cardinal Joshua Adayemi’s secret and Tremblay’s corruption scandal, it falls within reason to expect him to do the same with Benitez. However, the protagonist takes an entirely different avenue with him – doing nothing.

Part of the reason behind his inaction can be linked to Lawrence’s frustration with the whole election process and his own crisis of faith. After seeing the manner in which the candidates had turned the elections into a battle for power rather than finding a way to do what was best for the church, he was slightly disillusioned and increasingly wanted to leave the church behind. That frustration lasted until he met Cardinal Benitez. The Mexican cardinal was the only one not thinking about personal gain during the conclave, which mirrored his own motivations. However, Lawrence was more stoic in his approach, acting upon his duties without a lot of joy propelling them. He felt a completely different type of energy with Cardinal Benitez, who seemed both world-weary and wise in a way that Lawrence could never hope for.

Another significant factor was the former pope’s support for Benitez. Because Lawrence was close to him, he valued everything the chief pontiff had to say about the people around him. Thus, in the end, he decides to put his faith in his old mentor’s judgment and give Benitez the benefit of the doubt. Knowing the man’s purpose was genuine and upwardly motivated, Lawrence also saw no benefit in tarnishing his legacy, especially when he had renewed his own belief in the church.

What is the Significance of the Three Nuns? Why Does Lawrence Smile?

In the final moments of ‘Conclave,’ Thomas Lawrence watches on as the mechanical shutters across the College of Cardinals are lifted as new rays of sunshine enter the building. Lawrence watches three nuns exit the building and cheerfully run out into freedom. This follows from a scene where Lawrence runs into one of the pope’s turtles in the outer hall, which he carries over to the fountain. After leaving it in its habitat, a smile comes over the cardinal’s lips as he hears a roar of approval in the distance, which is most likely the revelation of Pope Innocent to the public. These few moments highlight the underlying symbols within the narrative, notably doubling down on the message of freedom and making the right choice in a difficult situation.

As the film primarily takes place inside the College because of the sequestering process, there is a sense of claustrophobia and pressure weighing down on the characters and environment at all times. Thus, the scene with the nuns running out of the door showcases the freedom after the conclave’s ending. After days of deliberation and pontificating on who the right candidate is to become pope, the symbol of the nuns personifies the end of a taxing ordeal while also providing new energy for the next person in charge of proceedings. It can also be seen as the beginning of a new dawn, especially as the latest pontiff is an intersex person, which is an unprecedented change in Christian leadership and may bring a different mindset regarding the inclusion of women in the church.

Thus, the mirthful nuns bring a completely different feel to the conclusion, especially when paired with Lawrence’s smile. Watching the protagonist be cheerful is a rare sight in the film, as he is mainly burdened with the massive responsibility of conducting the conclave. However, the smile on his lips as he listens to the audience’s reaction in the distance showcases his satisfaction with the elected pope. It makes him feel even more confident that the right decision was made and that he was justified in keeping Benitez’s secret safe with him. While others may judge him for it, Lawrence views it as the only way to unify the church and usher in a future that is not fragmented. If the truth were to come out now, all his work would be undone, and that would ultimately serve no one except his idealistic morality.